Blame it on Norway
by OnyxRing
Summary: Kayla Hudson was just an author on a business trip when one event changed her life forever. S.H.I.E.L.D. picks her up, and then she's training with the archer. But when she gets called in as an Avenger, she realizes that her powers aren't the worst things out there. Unusual powers, soldiers from the past, gods, secret agents and radiation monsters. Eventual Shardeye, OCxClint.
1. The Newbie

**Summary: ** Kayla Hudson was just an author on a business trip when one event changed her life forever. S.H.I.E.L.D. picks her up, and then she's training with the archer. But then she gets called in as an Avenger, and she realizes that her powers aren't the worst things out there. Unusual powers, soldiers from the past, gods, secret agents and radiation monsters. Eventual Shardeye, OCxClint.

_First things first, thank you, Twin, for helping me shape and stick with this one! She always gives me that shove to write, and she's always so happy to read and help out with my story. Love you, Twin! (CherryMoutain, check her out!) She also made the cover to the story, so thanks again!_

**Disclaimer: Duh! But seriously, why would I put a fanfiction up on _F__anFiction,_ if it wasn't fanfiction. Get what I mean? Yeah, I don't own Avengers or anything Marvel, because if I was Joss Whedon, I would be making a new movie, not a fanfic. Not saying it again. Thanks!**

**_Author's Note_: Hey fellas! Not sure if any of you will read this but you should! My first Avengers fanfiction, hopefully ya'll will like it, because I've worked _so_ hard on this story. Even if it is just a playback of the movie, I promise that if you all like it, I'll get a sequel going (already started it, _cough cough._) Okay, so I'm posting the first three chapters today because I want to get a start going here so I can get some feedback from reviews and what not.**

**There will be a lot of flashbacks in the first story - those will be in **_italics like so -_** so instead of just a rewrite of the movie, I have situations in the past that will help to shape the characters and the situation at hand. It was hard fitting in an OC, but it was fun. Challenging, but fun! I based the character (Kayla) off of the people I surround myself with, and the situation that happened to her, Norway, was kind of just an idea that I had for _another_ fanfic, but then I thought, what the hay!**

**So I'm planning on posting once a week, Wednesdays most likely, and even if I've been writing all along, I just want to get that feedback and ideas and answer any questions that you have. Feel free to ask! About anything! I'll respond to reviews if they are something other than, "great story, can't wait for an update!"**

**Also, if you find that you aren't enjoying the story, give me a review and say why, so I can improve and evolve. I love writing, and if there's any advice, good or bad, that I can get, I'll take it if it helps me in the long run.**

**So, the first few chapters are about getting to know Kayla a little, so they might be a little slow for your liking. But stick with me, it gets better!**

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Most people say, when it comes to stories, to start at the beginning.

Sure, this story could do that, but then again, what _is_ a beginning? Where this story started, isn't exactly what's important. It's where it started, how it evolved into the intense new life that was given to someone, who desperately needed change, but that's not where we'll start. This story will start with an event that no one saw coming, especially no one from this world. Don't worry, we'll get to the beginning... eventually.

For now, we'll skip ahead, to the fun stuff.

My name, is Kayla Hudson. And this is my story.

**Chapter One – The Newbie**

"What are the energy levels now?"

"Climbing," Agent Coulson responded. Him, Fury, with Agent Hill behind them, were quickly walking down the corridor, passing by agents and lab coats, who were getting gear and cases and heading out to the vehicles. "When Selvig couldn't shut it down, we ordered an evac."

"How long to get everyone out?" Fury asked.

"Can't be sure. Campus should be clear in the next half hour."

Fury glanced at Coulson meaningfully. "Do better."

Coulson nodded, then stopped in the hall, Fury and Hill still walking forward. Before he could turn around, the Director's voice stopped him. "Hudson stays with you."

oOo

"Did you not hear any of the alarms echoing through campus, Hudson?"

The voice startled Kayla, who had her feet tucked under her crisscross-applesauce style in a computer chair. She loved the movement of the chair. She pushed her hand on the table so her chair spun around to face the doorway. When she saw that it was only Agent Coulson, she let herself relax. "Oh. Yeah, I heard them alright. But from all my experience, being an author and all, usually any alarms going off in a top secret agency means there's an intruder, or something threatening."

She stood from her chair and shrugged her shoulders. "I decided to play it safe and lock the door." She glanced over his shoulder, accusing the door with her glare. "How'd you get in, anyways?"

"Clearance. Level Eight," was Coulson's only response. She thought she saw him start to roll his eyes, but caught himself. Instead, he said, "Come on, we're leaving."

"What's going on? There's not actually an intruder, is there?" Kayla walked forward, hoping that is wasn't true. She followed him out the door down the hallway. Of course, he didn't answer her. What was she thinking? Kayla practically had to jog to keep up with him at his pace. Even when they were roughly the same height - okay, maybe he was a little taller – he was walking really fast.

The author followed Coulson down the corridor, where they passed many people who were carrying bags and cases. Now she was worried. "Coulson, what's going on?"

He only turned his head slightly in her direction. "Evacuating."

_Man_, she thought, _people actually did talk like that in real life. Thought it was just books and movies. _As the two slowly, but quickly, made their way wherever Coulson was leading them, Kayla heard bits and pieces of conversations form the agents she passed. "Dangerous, cube, off the charts," and even something that sounded like "testing rack," or was it "take that rat?"

Then, the next thing Kayla knew, she was outside. She glanced around, watching as vehicles drove past her and people ran to more cars and trucks. She did jog this time to catch up to Coulson, who seemed to be walking even faster. He stopped at a truck and gestured her in. The back of the truck was a soft top, with people in black and others in lab coats, already piled into the back. There were two more seats left, and Kayla hopped in, taking one, while Coulson got in behind her, taking the last. She looked around at the handful of men sitting around her, half in black and gear, and her eyes widened at the sight of the guns in a couple of their hands. To make it worse, some had shades or visors on. _Who wears sunglasses at night_? Kayla had seen her fair share of guns while training under S.H.I.E.L.D., and they hadn't affected her. But the whole situation with evacuating and seeing everyone rushing around, now with guns ready to shoot, freaked her out. Something was happening, and since she wasn't technically part of S.H.I.E.L.D., she wouldn't be finding out anytime soon.

The vehicle lurched forward, taking off, and Kayla bumped into Coulson. "Sorry," she mumbled, still freaked out by the whole situation. Her mind wouldn't stop racing with the possibilities, and she couldn't keep her eyes off of the guy across form her with a rifle, holding it like he was getting ready to use it at any second. She was surprised; they were in a car, what could happen? She looked at the two men in lab coats and wearing rubber gloves, one sat next to her and the other across from him.

All of a sudden, a loud buzzing noise came from the building, and Kayla turned to look. Some sort of explosion rang out, and then the ground was raising and was moving like a wave across the ground. She heard glass shattering and metal bending, saw the building sinking in on itself as more explosions erupted. Kayla sucked in a breath at the destruction. The ground shook underneath the car, and Kayla was off her seat for a millisecond as the truck hit the bump. A few people reached forward to keep the huge case at their feet steady. With those movements, Kayla also saw the man across from her tighten his grip on his rifle, and she felt her hands shake.

The campus was falling in on itself, collapsing into the ground. She leaned forward to see around Coulson, and as the vehicle passed the huge satellites on the edge of the property, they began to fall, sinking and crashing down. The truck was barely able to drive fast enough to get away before they fell in too.

Kayla was speechless at the sight. _That could have been us,_ she thought. Coulson leaned back on the bench, his eyes falling shut. He looked defeated, the same way she was feeling. Kayla herself felt her mouth hanging open. A whole building, still filled with people, destroyed in seconds. Her heart was racing, and her hands shaking.

But the car drove on, and the back was silent, even more silent than it was before. The only sound was the engine as it drove. Kayla leaned her arms on her legs and let out a breath. Her thoughts went to the people that were inside, thinking if they got crushed by the weight of the building, or hurt in an explosion.

Kayla felt Coulson move beside her, and she turned to look at him. He had pulled out a little radio and held it to his mouth. "Director. Director Fury, do you copy?"

Fury immediately responded. "_The Tesseract is with the hostile force. I have men down. Hill_?" His voice cracked through the radio.

"_A lot of men still under._" Hill's voice crackled through, hers filled with more static. Kayla knew the woman. Hill was the one she had to report to if something went wrong, like when Kayla accidentally damaged a row of computers. She continued. "_Don't know how many survivors._"

Kayla didn't hear what Fury said next. _Don't know how many survivors_. The words rang through her head. She shook her head in disbelief. There had to be people who survived.

_"Coulson,"_ Fury's voice rang out. "_Get back to base. This is a Level Seven. As of right now, we are at war_."

Fear ran through her body, but Coulson seemed to react to the news fine. After all, he was an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. They had the best poker faces. "What do we do?"

Fury didn't respond.

"Sir?" Coulson asked.

"_Assemble the Avengers._"

oOo

"Are you sure I'm ready for this?"

"Funny," Coulson said, although he didn't laugh or even crack a smile. "I was just going to ask you that."

Kayla kept on talking like Coulson hadn't. "Because I've had practice, six months' worth of practice with the best, but not in _real life _situations. What if, _what if_ something happens? _What if –_" Coulson cut her off, spinning around and taking a step towards her. Everything about his face seemed serious, all except the way his mouth twitched slightly. _Great, he finds my discomfort amusing!_

"You're nervous, right now, as Kayla Hudson. But I've seen you in action, as Shard. Out there, in real life." Coulson pointed at where her hands rested on her stomach. Kayla rolled her eyes at her code name, but it fit her along with her powers. "With your shards, you're not Kayla Hudson anymore. You're a fighter. You don't get nervous, because in _real life_, you don't get tested or evaluated. You're saving lives."

When he finished his speech, he finally stepped away from Kayla. She let his words sink in, thinking about her last training session a week ago.

oOo

"_What if I hurt you, you know? Accidently shoot one of these at you and BAM! Training session over." Kayla gestured with her hands at the appropriate times. She always worried like this during a training session, worried since she had only been at this for a few months, not years like the other guy. She also worried because he wasn't her usual partner; that one was somewhere across the globe._

"_You're not gonna hurt me," The man in front of her rolled his eyes and let a smile fall onto his lips._

"_How do you know that? I barely even know how to pronounce your name, what's to stop me from taking you out?"_

_The man rolled his eyes again. Agent Whatever His Name Is reached behind his back and immediately, Kayla got into a defensive stance and pulled her shield out from her core. Even with her shield raised, she rolled out of the way as the object he threw was soaring through the air towards her, and prepared to fight back, all worries of accidently hurting him gone._

oOo

"Point made," Kayla smiled and pointed at Coulson, then narrowed her eyes at him. 'So you guys _are_ testing me."

Coulson turned away from her, and she grinned at his back, wondering if he was grinning too. She reached for the apple on the table and took a bite out of it. After the destruction at Campus, Coulson took her to another base, smaller than the first. It was an Emergency Only base, a back-up for if something happened, like something _did_ happen. Kayla's thoughts roamed, mostly on what she heard Coulson say on the phone as she had walked in. _Barton's been compromised._ She heard it earlier, when Fury had told her in person, but hearing Coulson say it for some reason, maybe because he was the second one to say it, to confirm it, made it even more real. She was scared for Clint, that he wouldn't be okay. Everything was becoming more real since Fury had said, _as of right now, we are at war._

Kayla shook her head to free her thoughts, wanting to think about something else. Thankfully, Coulson spoke up. "Grab your uniform. We're heading out."

Kayla perked up. She was actually happy to see what her uniform turned out to look like. It had to be better than the alternative.

oOo

_Kayla frowned at the sight of the uniform that would be hers. She would be disappointed at the blue and black fabric that looked just like Maria Hill's and all of the other S.H.I.E.L.D.'s uniforms. _

"_Do my eyes deceive me?" Kayla asked in disbelief. She didn't want to look like every other woman on the base, she didn't want to blend in. And now she sounded like she was whining. And she was. Who would want to, in her shoes? "I can't wear this."_

"_What are you talking about? What's wrong with it?" Coulson came up to stand next to her, eyebrows lowered in question. And she told him. "I don't want to look like everyone else. I don't want to wear S.H.I.E.L.D. colors because I'm not _part_ of S.H.I.E.L.D."_

_She watched as Coulson's mouth moved, and she heard him mumble in frustration as he raised a hand to his forehead. He continued to mumble about her being a child, or something like that. Kayla grinned. "Can we change it?" She pulled her best most innocent smile she could muster and looked at the agent. It took all of four seconds for Coulson's shoulders to drop in defeat. Kayla jumped up, literally, in excitement. "Okay, let's break it up, shirt and top, then pants. And maybe show some skin?"_

_Kayla threw out a bunch of suggestions, babbling on and on about what she thought would look acceptable as a superhero. Coulson just shook his head, a smile slowly forming on his lips._

oOo

"New and improved?" Kayla followed Coulson, the memory fading. They moved to the other side of the room. Anticipation ran through her.

"I put a lot of thought into it." Coulson smiled, proud of his work. He stopped at a closet type thing and turned to the young author. "I think you'll like this a lot more."

Then he was pushing the door open and standing aside. New and improved was right. Though it was the same type of fabric - thick with armor - it was completely different.

She smiled. "Perfect."

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**_End Note_: Remember, review, bad or good, because I could use the feedback! And sorry again for the slow going chapter.  
**

_-OnyxRing_


	2. The Mystery in Her

_**Author's Note: **_**Again, the first few chapters are a little slow. Remember, italics are flashbacks. **

**Any questions? I'll answer them right here in the author's note the next time I update, unless they're psychic predictions; then I won't want to give anything away!**

**This chapter, The Mystery in Her, is just that. It's just a little input of how Kayla thinks, all mysteriously and she likes to know the facts. It's suppose to help give her personality a little, show how she thinks. Although, we won't see much of this until after chapter ten, and in the second book.**

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**Chapter Two - The Mystery in Her**

Coulson drove. She hadn't asked where, and frankly, she didn't care, as long as she was moving, being occupied. Kayla was happy to get out, and to get a new uniform, although she hadn't put it on. It was in a briefcase in the trunk. She was happy, up until she had to go and think about Clinton Barton.

_Compromised._ The word rang through her mind, even as she tried her hardest to not think about it, to think about something else. Kayla shook her head and hit it against the headrest. She turned to look at the agent in the driver's seat. "So, Coulson. What brings us to this side of town?"

"Picking up someone."

"They're sitting in the back, right?" Kayla pointed with her thumb over her shoulder. _I called shotgun first,_ she thought. Although it was childish, there was more leg room in the front, and she seemed particularly slouchy today.

But Coulson shook his head. "Picking up someone for the team. Not literally."

"Oh." _Oh. The team._ Asking someone to join the team, telling them what had happened at the base, even if _she _didn't know what happened. They were getting the team ready. Coulson had told her about what he liked to call the Avengers Initiative, where S.H.I.E.L.D. would put a team together that would be there when the world needed it; and it looked like the world needed it. Fury was expecting a war, and he was putting the team together. Kayla felt a wave of anticipation run through her. She had only been on one mission, and all she did was help in being the eyes. All the mission was was picking up a package, although she was pretty sure they stole it. But she was asked to join this new team, with new people she hadn't met yet, and it was exciting. "What are they like?"

Coulson glanced over at her when he had heard how small her voice was, as if he was checking on her. Kayla was surprised herself. She was ready now, more than she ever was before.

"I've meet a few of them. So have you."

"Yeah?" Kayla turned towards him, fully, so her back pressed up against the passenger side door. Even if it was unsafe without a seatbelt, she didn't wear one. She hated how she felt so restrained. The author racked her brain, thinking about who she had met that would be on this team of "superheroes." She tested, "Like who?"

"Barton." Just that one word, that name, made her mood sink down again. She flicked her gaze away to look out the front windshield. "He's supposed to be on the team."

_Supposed to be. _Meaning, now that he was compromised, there was no way on Earth that S.H.I.E.L.D. would let the archer on the team now. Coulson continued. "His partner, Romanoff. You've met her, if only briefly. A few weeks ago, Barton's mission to Paris. That was Romanoff, who's now on a mission in Russia."

Kayla was surprised that the agent was telling her this. He was an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., agents who usually kept all of their missions' top secret, classified, to all civilians. Maybe it was because he knew that Kayla wouldn't tell anyone. Who was there to tell anyways? She didn't have many friends, none that she trusted enough with her owns secrets, let alone a government agency's secrets. She thought about who Coulson was talking about, the archer's partner. "Oh, yeah." She said when the name finally clicked. "Red hair? Shoulder length? Always straight faced? Clint talks about her a lot."

When the author first visited S.H.I.E.L.D., she started working with Clint Barton after they found out she liked to throw things. That was six months ago. She was introduced to the agent before her mission to Russia, where she was going without her partner, which is why Clint was free to help Kayla learn to protect herself. He had been the one who willingly threw sharp objects at her, and let her do the same. He had been the one to urge her to use her powers, even if he was reluctant at first. Who would want to teach a twenty-six year old who acted like a teenager?

Kayla had spent her time the years before traveling, writing, and watching murder mysteries since she was nineteen. She didn't even take the time to go to college, to act like an adult. She hadn't needed to. Her father, Jared Hudson, had written horror – which inspired Kayla to write from a different perspective, falling in love with writing – and was the author of four hit series. As his daughter, the girl obtained so much knowledge in all things writing, had even kept a journal in her teen years with little writing pieces to practice. It helped to strengthen her skills. At nineteen, she published her first book, without the help of her father, which ignited the fire inside her. Novels became her whole world. She wrote and wrote and wrote.

The only thing that pushed her even deeper into the writing world was when her father passed away four days before her second book in her series was published. Kayla needed to write, for herself and for her father, even if he hadn't been that great of a father in the long run. She even changed her pen name so the last name matched her father's pen name. When Jared passed, he left everything to her. She had enough that she didn't need to work, to get a job; so she didn't. Kayla lived in her father's house, his office untouched now for seven years. She traveled instead, writing her books. She didn't have any family, except some distant family across the country.

"Hudson… Kayla!" Coulson's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

She caught his eye and hummed. "What did I miss?"

"We're here." Coulson rested his arm against the steering wheel as Kayla glanced around. They were deep in the city, lights lighting up the night. "I was asking you if you wanted to come in."

"Oh. No." Kayla waved it off, and slunk down in the seat again. She _wanted_ to meet this member of the team. Since she had been with the agency, she slowly started to learn how to be social. She wanted to meet him, or who she assumed was a man, but for now… "I'll stay in the car."

Coulson studied her for a few moments, searching her face. This is turn, made Kayla slouch down even more. Finally, after what felt like minutes of the two staring at each other, but was probably only a few seconds, the agent gave her the satisfaction of just nodding and stepping out of the car. Before he shut the door, he ducked his head to look at her one last time. "I'll only be a few minutes." After a pause and a look he said, smiling, "Don't break anything."

"Funny!" She said as Coulson shut the door. She yelled again, through the metal of the door just so he could hear. "Very funny!"

She found herself rolling her eyes, and she couldn't stop the smile that tugged onto her lips. A memory surfaced; Last week, she had been roaming the campus by herself after a practice session. She entered a room, looking for some privacy so she could change her shirt. She was completely lost, not able to find a bathroom anywhere. After checking to make sure that there was no one there that would see her change, she glanced around the room. It seemed to be some kind of storage room, filled with bins and crates down both sides of the walls. It wasn't a big room, more like a bigger than usual closet.

Kayla ungracefully pulled her shirt off, somehow getting her arm stuck in the hole. She didn't know how, only that her sore muscles could be to blame. She ended up getting frustrated after a few moments, and began to thrash her arms. This caused her to move, taking a step back, and she jerked her elbow out. Bone connected with plastic, making a crate tumble down to the ground. The next thing she knew, more and more crates were falling around her, creating some kind of domino effect. Bins clattered to the floor and items clattered out of the lids, causing the loudest crash that she had heard in the whole building. Her shirt had come off in the commotion, and she quickly slipped on the new one just in time for two agents to slam the door open, guns raised.

Kayla felt her face heat up in embarrassment. "No danger. Just some fallen bins and an ungraceful girl over here." She immediately knelt down and started to pick up the items scattered on the floor. The men stopped her, assuring her that they had in under control and that she could leave. Kayla covered her face with her hands, noticing that they still had their guns in hand. _Must think I'm an idiot,_ was what she thought as she got out of there as fast as she could, her body heating with embarrassment.

The author was brought out of her thoughts a second time, but not by a voice. Kayla stilled as she listened, straining her ears. Some sort of buzzing noise that sounded like static. It could have been easily mistaken as a radio, but she checked the car, and it was off. As she slowly turned in her seat, she realized that it was coming from _inside_ of the car. The mystery writer in her screamed at her to find out what that was.

"No," she was surprised that she spoke out loud, but went with it anyways, having a battle with her own mind. "No. No! This is Coulson's car, and I will _not_ search it. It's nothing."

Kayla sat back in her seat, crossing her arms over her chest. She was just going to sit there and wait for Coulson to get back. She wasn't going to do it, no matter how much of a strain it was. "Nope. No, no, no. Hm."

She was telling herself no, but her brain was screaming, wondering what it could be. The silence – minus the buzzing that was just getting louder to her own ears – was killing her. _Don't do it,_ she thought to herself. _Just sit still._ And she did.

Two seconds passed before she spun around and looked at the back seats, searching. The thought, _what if it's a bomb _did her in. She didn't want to die. Plus, how could she not? She wrote murder mysteries for a living. It was part of her personality to dig.

Kayla's eyes searched every inch, every centimeter of the back seats, looking. When she found nothing, she let out a frustrated "humpf," and then she was crawling over the center console, limbs hitting the seats on the way. After what felt like an obstacle course to get back there, she finally realized that she could have climbed out of the car and got in through the back door. _Of course._

As she listened again for the noise, she ended up tilting her head to the side. Now the sound was coming from the floor, and she didn't hesitate to drop, her body parallel to the floor. Now, the loudest it's ever been, Kayla heard it buzzing coming from directly below where she had been sitting, under the passenger seat. Was it in the floor? She looked for some kind of indication that there was a secret hiding place there, and she found one.

"Ah ha!" She cried out victoriously, grabbing the small handle that was barely noticeable. A loud _pop_ sounded as she pulled on the handle, making her sit up, now on her hands and knees. The floor under the seat lifted, and she cautiously tucked a finger under the cover and slowly lifted up. She was relieved to find that it didn't look like a bomb, just some sort of technology that she couldn't even really explain.

Before she could even investigate properly, the car door opened, and Kayla immediately slammed the cover down and lifted her head up to look between the front seats. Coulson was sliding in the front seat, and then a woman stepping into the passenger side, pulling a small bag with her. Kayla was alarmed that she hadn't heard the two outside.

Coulson was looking at her, a funny unreadable expression on his face. "What are you doing?"

"Uhh, nothing. Nope. What are _you_ doing?" Kayla looked back down at the cover of the secret compartment one last time to check if it was closed, and then sat back in the seat. With a glance at the agent, she saw the knowing look on his face and his eyebrows shot up at her innocent look she sent back. She leaned back, as if to get as far away as possible. Then his eyes flickered, unmistakingly down, as if he looked directly at the machine under the seat before meeting hers again. A few seconds passed before a smile fell on his lips and he looked away.

That was definitely the don't-ever-talk-about-it look.

"Oh, well hello," Kayla turned back to the woman, in the passenger seat, who was looking at her with a smile on her face. And, she was in Kayla's seat. She had red-orange hair, straight and a little past her shoulders. Bangs cut across her forehead, and she had a small amount of freckles across her cheeks, and high cheekbones. "I didn't know there was someone with you."

"Is she…?" Question implied. Coulson shook his head at Kayla, who had her head tilted to the side as she hitched a thumb over to the woman in the passenger seat. She was silently asking if this was a team member, since she thought they weren't _actually_ picking someone up. Plus, she didn't want to give away any secret government secrets that even _she_ wasn't supposed to know about.

Coulson barely shook his head, quick enough that Kayla barely saw him do it. "Pepper, this is my associate, Miss Hudson."

"Kayla," she immediately corrected as she too looked at the woman. "Pepper. That's a pretty name."

"Thank you!" Pepper beamed. She held her hand out as she turned in her seat to shake the younger girl's hand. "It's nice to meet you, Kayla." Kayla nodded.

Pepper turned to the agent with a look that Kayla didn't quite catch. Then Coulson was starting the car and everyone faced forward, staring out the front windshield. It was silent; the only sound was of the engine. It was a pretty awkward silence.

"So…" Kayla threw out there, encouraging conversation. The silence wasn't working for her.

"I hope you don't mind. Phil offered to drive me to the airport, since you're heading that way."

_Phil?_ Kayla covered her mouth with a fist to contain the giggles or anything else that threatened to escape. She couldn't believe that his name was _Phil._ Too bad _Phil_ had caught her eye in the rearview mirror. Kayla cleared her throat and removed her hand, doing her best to put on a neutral expression. She sat up straight. "No, I don't mind. This is my first time actually doing something that's not business in _days._"

Well, technically, that wasn't true. She was on some kind of business right then and there. Fury was putting the team together, and Coulson had just driven them to do just that. Hopefully, whoever they "picked up" was in. She looked over at Pepper, wondering if the older woman knew about S.H.I.E.L.D., or was even apart of S.H.I.E.L.D. herself. She kept her mouth shut though, not wanting to reveal anything and get yelled at.

"Well, _I'm _actually going on a business trip…" Pepper continued talking, but Kayla was sucked into memories at the combination of _business trip._ Why did she have to say those two words? Why _business trip?_ The rest of the car ride was a blur mixed with thoughts of Norway.

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_**End Note:**_** Review? It's the last time I'll ask, promise.**

_-OnyxRing_


	3. The Soldier

_**Author's Note:**_** Last chapter for today, and I'm pretty sure that you can figure out what's happening by chapter title. So, Kayla's personality is a little childish, I know, but that's because she didn't have a lot of social interaction growing up. It's unique, and it's like this for a reason. We're going to watch Kayla grow up before our eyes. **

**Thanks again to my Twin, CherryMountain! Haihiealadshdsafheya. Love ya!**

**Enjoy! Remember: Italics = Flashbacks!**

* * *

**Chapter 3 – The Soldier**

"So, what are we doing here?" Kayla asked, probably for the fourth time.

"The Helicarrier." Coulson replied, probably for the fourth time.

"Right. That explains _everything._" Kayla followed the agent as he carried a suitcase across the cement, Kayla dragging her own suitcase. Coulson had given her some sort of device; it was like a piece of glass, with a few small buttons on one edge. He had turned it on, and told her it worked like a tablet. So she took over from there and scrolled through the files of data that were held on it. She read while they headed wherever they were going, which was some sort of private airport or something. She had no idea. The only thing she knew was what the files said, on the device that was now tucked under her arm, about the Avengers Initiative. He told her that the team wasn't official, just something they had organized. She was apparently a part of that team, because she was willing to use her ability, and Coulson had approved her for the team. Half of the time, Kayla thought that he was telling her way too much of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secrets. She liked to think that it was because they were friends, no matter how many times he rolled his eyes at her or her acting immature. He was her _only _friend, if you didn't count Clint, who wasn't really a friend. Or Fury, who was her temporary boss and who barked orders at her like she was one of his soldiers. Speaking of, Kayla spoke up, "So, tell me about Captain America."

At that, Coulson looked back around at her. That seemed to be something he seemed to enjoy, the topic of the World War II soldier. She noticed how he physically straightened, as if excited. The two stopped a few feet away from the jet or whatever it was, while Kayla slipped the device she still held into the first smaller pocket of her bag. The jet was small and… small.

"Well, if you actually read the files, instead of just looking at the pictures..." Coulson let the sentence hang in the air.

"I did." Kayla smiled at him, who was surprised. She raised an eyebrow at him, a smirk now playing at her lips. "Really, Coulson? I'm an author. Of _course_ I'm going to read anything I can get my hands on. And plus, there were, like, _two_ pictures." She watched him roll his eyes. She was overjoyed. "I read the file."

"Then why are you asking?"

"Captain Steven Grant Rogers. Got injected with the serum that turned him into a super-soldier. Super human intelligence, ability, strength, speed, endurance and reaction time. Saved, what, a whole camps worth of lives? From a base camp in Germany? Crashed a plane into the Arctic, saving even more lives, and found sixty some odd years later. I know he's a soldier, a hero." Kayla pulled her suitcase out in front of her, leaning forward as she gripped the handle. "But what the file _didn't_ say is what's he _like?_ Is he generous or greedy? Does he _read?_ Because _these_ are the things one has to know about someone."

"Well, why don't you ask him yourself?" Coulson nodded to her right, and Kayla's head tilted on its side as she turned. A car was parked, the engine still on as the back door stood open. Exiting the vehicle was a man. Blonde hair and a nice build was the first thing she noticed about him. Looking closer, she saw how his hair was neatly combed back and somewhat parted, a little layered as his hair got darker and shorter in the back. She saw his blue eyes scan across the area, taking in every detail, as he squinted against the sun. A man stood next to the blonde, then gestured, pointing towards the two who waited. In person, he somehow looked more alive. Granted, he was moving, and in the flesh. The picture in the file did not do this man justice. As he walked closer, she saw his face in more detail, and his features were beautiful. He was wearing greyish slacks, and a button up shirt with a brown leather jacket thrown over it, holding a bag in hand. He walked over, and stopped a few feet from Coulson and Kayla, nodding.

Coulson stretched his hand out to the captain. "Captain Rogers, it's an honor to meet you. Agent Phil Coulson."

"Glad to be here. Anything I can do to help." The captain nodded to Coulson, then turned his attention to the woman at his side. His blue eyes trained on her hazel ones as he inclined his head towards her. "Ma'am."

Kayla smiled, and blushed slightly. She most definitely did not classify herself to be in the ma'am area. It was strange because she was younger than him, even if you didn't include the years in the ice. She could blame it on how he was from a different time, and that he was a soldier. She followed suit of the agent and shook his hand. He had a firm handshake, his hand huge compared to hers. "Kayla Hudson." When they dropped hands, she added as an afterthought, "No agent included."

He nodded again. The brunette was a little nervous, to say the least. Captain America was standing in front of her, after all. _The_ _hero_. She tried to hide it by shrugging and looking around. The captain's voice caused her to turn back to him. "So, if you're not a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, can I ask what you're doing here?"

She raised an eyebrow at him, a small smile lifting the corners of her mouth. "Patience, Captain."

Kayla saw Coulson out of the corner of her eye shake his head, and then he stepped back to indicate the plane thing behind himself. "Shall we?"

Coulson waited for Rogers to go first, and Kayla grinned at Coulson as the soldier walked up the small ramp. She leaned closer to the agent, to lower her voice. "I see why the agents say you've got a crush on him." He glared at her, and Kayla was taken aback by surprise. "Hey, I see why. He's… One of a kind."

Kayla quickly grabbed her suitcase and made her way up the ramp away from the agent. She smiled once she was sure he wouldn't see her. She thought about the soldier that was somewhere behind her, stowing away his bag while she did the same. He had that vibe to him, one where you could tell he still favored his time. His fashion sense hadn't quite caught up with modern styles, and you could easily pick him out of a crowd. It wasn't a bad thing, necessarily, but it was different, and it just added to the idea of Captain America. Kayla sort of wished she met him back in his day, too. He should be the same man, because it hadn't been sixty years for him, but it would have been interesting none the less.

When she turned around, she saw Coulson had taken a seat at the small computer that was on her right. She took a seat across from Rogers. The agent said a few words to the pilots, and then the ramp was closing, and the engines were starting up.

It took a few moments, so Kayla felt a need to end the silence. "So. Do you read?" She thought she heard Coulson mumble something, or maybe he had laughed. She realized how that might have sounded, saying that to the captain. "I mean books! Not in general, of course you can read! I didn't mean that as an insult. Never mind. Forget I said anything."

Captain Rogers raised his eyebrows at her from where he sat, the corner of his mouth twitching. Kayla held his gaze for a few seconds, feeling her cheeks burn up. She turned away when the jet lifted off of the ground. She listened to Coulson talk through the gigantic headphones on his ears. After a few minutes in the air, the agent glanced at Kayla and spoke. "Do you think you could grab that pad I gave you, and show Captain Rogers those files?"

"Yeah," Kayla stood and grabbed the device from her bag. She turned on the device and then walked over to the captain. She scrolled down with her finger once the files popped up, and then she swiped to the right to show him how to get to the next file. A few moments later, he was getting the hang of it himself.

She returned to her seat and the jet was quiet as everyone concentrated on something, the only exception was Kayla. She watched as Rogers scrolled and read through some files. A few pictures popped up here and there, and she wondered what was going through his head. The brunette thought that he would be used to it, the way a few of them had abilities, similar to his own. What he would see shouldn't be too shocking for him.

She turned her attention to the pilots, as they maneuvered the jet through the sky. She heard them talk over the headsets, and she watched the blue of the sky. Kayla found her mind wandering, about the team that was being pulled together, at least what she read from the files. She still couldn't fathom the idea of her being on this team full of superheroes. It was all so surreal.

"We're about forty minutes out from Home Base, sir." One of the pilots called out, turning briefly to indicate Coulson. The agent removed his headset from his head and set it down before standing.

"So, this Dr. Banner was trying to replicate the serum they used on me?" Rogers said as Coulson walked over to stand closer to him.

"A lot of people were." He reached his hand up and grabbed onto the handle that ran along the ceiling of the jet. He shrugged. "You were the world's first superhero. Banner thought gamma radiation might hold the key to unlocking Erskine's original formula."

"Didn't really go his way, did it?" Rogers asked, watching the screen in front of him. Kayla could see a flash of green from where he held it, and the speakers were working with explosion sounds and growls.

"Not so much. When he's not that thing though, guy's like a Stephen Hawking." The captain glanced up at Coulson, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Coulson's mouth turned down some, like he didn't know how to explain it. He went with: "He's like a, smart person."

Rogers nodded, probably not really getting it. Kayla tried to suppress a giggle by covering it with a cough. The blonde looked over at her and she smiled knowingly at him.

Coulson stepped back, nodding some more. "I gotta say, it's an honor to meet you. Officially. I sort of met you. I mean, I watched you, while you were sleeping."

The captain smiled quickly up at Coulson after he said officially. When the agent had added that about the watching while he was sleeping, it was too much. Rogers looked down, uncomfortably, and Kayla couldn't keep in the giggle this time. He glanced at her again before standing and making his way over to where the pilots were. He leaned against the wall, his arm over his head as he leaned down to look out the front window.

"I mean, I was – I was present, while you were unconscious from the ice." Coulson mimicked the captain, leaning with his arm up above the small entrance way. "You know, it's really, it's just a – it's just a huge honor to have you on board. It's-"

Rogers glanced over at Kayla, his eyes looking slightly pained, who was silently letting Coulson have his moment, unintentionally making it awkward to all three of them. He looked back out the front window, his voice low. "Well I hope I'm the man for the job."

"Oh, you are. Absolutely." Coulson glanced around, smiling a little. Kayla felt herself grinning at the whole situation. The agents at the base were correct, and had even understated. Coulson was having a fangirl moment. A superhero obsessive man crush. But he was finally realizing that himself. "Uh, we made some, modifications to the uniform. I had a little design input."

Kayla though about her own uniform that was packed away in her suitcase, brand new. The captain turned to Coulson surprised. "Uniform? Aren't the stars and stripes a little, old fashioned?"

"Everything that's happening, the things that are about to come to light, people might just need a little old fashioned."

"I know I would." Kayla said. Her life had changed so much since she had become part of this world filled with abilities and superheroes.

"Ma'am. I read your file, but it's a little confusing." Rogers had turned around and looked at her before walking back over to the seat he had sat in earlier. "Do you mind clarifying?"

"Clarifying? Like what?" Kayla leaned forward in her seat and watched as the screen lit up from the device that Rogers held. Then it clicked in what he had said. She glared at Coulson. "Wait. I have a file?"

Coulson almost rolled his eyes but nodded instead. "It just says your basic information and states that you're training under S.H.I.E.L.D. It also says your abilities, but that's about it."

Rogers spoke up again. "Clarifying, for example, what 'manifests glass-like shards from wrists," means?"

She felt herself blush slightly, and then she smiled softly. "Well, Captain, it means exactly what it says." Then she proceeded to show him. _Seeing is believing, after all_, she thought. Kayla looked down at her right arm as she pulled the sleeve up to expose her forearm. She barely had to think about it after the long months she had been practicing as she flicked her wrist. A soft yellowish-pinkish glow emanated around her arm as a shard slid out from thin air and she closed her fingers over the object. The yellow-pink glowed dimmed from her arm, and instead the shard glowed slightly.

In the shape of a parallelogram, it was about a foot long, and a half an inch thick. The longer and wider she made her shards, the thicker they got. The corners on either side vertically were sharp, making it much easier for Kayla as she could throw them or use them as knives. She flicked her wrist again, after moving the first to her left hand. The second one she made smaller, letting it land in her hand. It was about the length of her palm.

Kayla glanced up, finally looking up at the captain. His face was one of shock and disbelief, his mouth opened slightly. She grinned. She had surprised him. It was exhilarating because he was Captain America, and she was a nobody. Standing, she slowly walked across to him and handed the foot long shard out to him, so he could exam it.

Hesitantly, the super soldier took the object in his hands. It glowed slightly in his hands, like the shards always did. "This is – this is amazing." He breathed out, glancing up at her again. Kayla's cheeks grew warm as he tried bending it in his hands. Even his super strength couldn't bend it and he frowned. But the smile appeared on his lips again as he handed the shard back to her. She looked away shyly, seeing Coulson nodding, as if to himself.

"You have a gift." His smile was genuine and encouraging as Kayla sat back down in her original seat across from him.

"Thank you." She watched the captain as he watched her. She flipped the shard in her hand a few times before she lifted the shard and hit the flat side of it to her palm. Immediately, the shard vanished, the weight gone as it disappeared in a yellowish glow. The brunette watched as Rogers eyes widened. "Yeah, it doesn't break easily, only vanishes when I hit it against my palm for some reason." Kayla picked up the first shard and repeated the process. "It's got like, layers and layers crushed together or something. We stood one up, a big one, and shot a bullet at it. The bullet only left a small dent in the shard, one or two layers.

"So far, there's only two ways to destroy one, the first one with my palm, and the second is distance. I have no idea why, but I have a guess." Kayla leaned forward in her seat, placing her hands on her knees. "As I or a shard gets farther and farther away from me, the glow dims and then the shard just disintegrates after miles. I think it generates from my core, like my shield. Like maybe my body is its energy source and if the shard gets farther away, it just, _dies_."

"I've never seen anything like it," Rogers said, also leaning forward. "So, can I ask how you got these powers?"

Kayla rose an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Well," he glanced up at Coulson, eyebrows furrowed. She looked up at the older man as well, before looking back at the man across from her. "I got injected with the serum. That was what turned me into a super soldier. Dr. Banner was exposed to a lot of gamma radiation, which is what turns him into that, thing, right?"

"I-" Kayla felt lost. She had never asked _how,_ she only knew that she had wanted to know _why, _not _how._ She crossed her arms over her chest, feeling that certain anger rise under her skin, pushing the blood harder through her veins. "Blame it on Norway."

Rogers looked lost, too. Coulson spoke up then, and she watched him as he moved back into the chair in front of the computer he had sat at earlier. He took the liberty of explaining, seeing how Kayla had closed herself off. She almost smiled, _almost,_ at how well the agent knew her. She knew he was one of the few. "Hudson's powers first appeared under certain," Coulson paused for a moment, eyes flickering over to her before settling on the captain again, "emotional circumstances. She's been practicing with S.H.I.E.L.D. ever since."

"I understand that, but how? Was it a chemical?"

"We've done plenty of blood samples and our scientists have detected nothing unusual in her blood. Her genes though, there was an anomaly." Coulson glanced at her again, and Kayla quirked an eyebrow at his next words. "Our scientists couldn't figure it out, so we consulted an expert in gene mutation. He said that you were born with this ability, and that the traumatic event is what caused your abilities to manifest. He was actually surprised it didn't happen when you were younger, like most of his students."

"Wait, what?" Kayla felt her blood surge in a new way, in excitement. "You mean, there are more people like me, with abilities?" Why was she just hearing about this now? After so many months?

"Apparently. So the only logical explanation, since nothing like what happened to the captain or Dr. Banner happened to you, you were born this way. " Coulson shrugged, like it was no big deal. But Kayla, she thought it was a big deal. The first month after Norway, she had thought that she was the only one. She had thought that she was a freak. Even after she had started working with S.H.I.E.L.D., after she had found out that Captain America existed and Iron Man was flying around New York, she hadn't heard of anyone who had just had abilities. Everyone that she knew of had had some kind of accident, was experimented on, or was even an alien.

"Well," Rogers smiled, a full genuine smile. "That's something."

Kayla appreciated it, and found herself smiling back. Not many people that she had encountered, mostly S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, found her ability to be a "gift," or amazing. The only other person who hadn't thought, _Oh, what can we do with a girl who can throw sharp objects and use her in a fight,_ was Clint Barton. Well, he probably thought it was useful, but he admired her shield and shards. He talked about them like they were her friends, like his own bow was to him. She smiled as a memory surfaced.

But thinking about Clint made her think about recent events, how he was gone. _Barton's been compromised._ Kayla hated those words. They made her stomach twist and her eyes sting. Fury had said that he had been brainwashed, that his body and mind were being controlled. That he wasn't himself anymore. She hoped to the moon and back that he would come back, to be Clint again. She hoped that he would be okay. She felt her stomach twist again at the thought of anything happening to him, she couldn't stand to think about what was being done to him, or what he was being forced to do. Not to Clint.

oOo

"_Is that all you got?" Clint held a knife in one hand while gesturing what looked to be bring-it from his other hand. Or maybe it was come-at-me. It was hard to tell; with Clint, she never knew._

_Kayla was already breathing heavily from their "dance." The two had been at it for what felt like hours. She had been given a few bruises and even a small cut on the shoulder and thigh. Not deep, and barely breaking the skin. Clint barely had a scratch on him. She stood a few feet away from him, a shard in each hand, her shoulders rising with each breath. Clint stood across from her, a smirk on his lips, not breathing any differently than normal._

_When she finally got her breathing some-what under control, she moved, throwing one shard at Clint's right shoulder while generating another a moment later, and throwing another at the same time at Clint's left foot while taking a step forward. Of course, Kayla had been expecting him to dodge both. She didn't know how he was so good. She threw another pair at him, all the while moving closer to him._

_The archer's smirk was still plain on his face, as if it was a game to him. In a way, it was. He had been winning – defeating her – the moment they had started training together five months ago. She'd barely been able to hit him, a few scratches and a stab once to the thigh from a little inch length shard a few weeks ago. But other than that, he had laid most of the hits, her receiving. Today, she had a new plan. She had been so focused on her shards and obtaining good aim. Time for a change of advancement. _

_Kayla held one shard in her right hand and literally leapt forward, tackling Clint, throwing all of her weight on him. She only had a split second to see the surprise on his face before they were falling down, Kayla latching onto his shoulder as he fell onto the mat. When gravity efficiently worked, and they stilled, she straddled Clint's hips as she pulled her shard up to his neck, holding it like a dagger gently against his skin. Her dark brown hair fell forward, the tips lying on his chest. Now she was the one smirking down at him, and Clint was out of breath. She whispered, "I win." _

_Clint stared up at her, one hand resting on her right knee, the other laying on the floor. Kayla was holding herself up by her left hand in the space between his head and his hand. She stared down at him, the smirk slowly fading as she realized the situation she had thrown herself into. Blue eyes stared back up at her, flickering across her face, before meeting her hazel eyes again. Kayla glanced down at his lips, then to where her shard was pressed up to his neck, the glow making his face pink. She felt where her knees and thighs touched his waist, was conscious of neither of them moving except for their eyes and their chests. How she could feel the warmth of his skin through both layers of clothes. The author forgot about winning as she stared down at the man and felt herself lean down slowly. Clint swallowed roughly, the shard moving against his neck. "Kay."_

_Her name snapped her out of her thoughts. Kayla removed the shard from his neck and scrambled off of Clint as fast as she could. When she stood, she took a few steps back and turned away, her thoughts racing. She had started to lean forward, had almost kissed him. _I almost kissed Clint, _she thought. The girl ran a hand through her hair as her cheeks flushed. She had been _on top of him_, inches away from doing… that. Kayla heard Clint stand behind her, and she knew that she was only a few feet away from him, but she couldn't turn around. She couldn't risk seeing the emotions that were running through him. Especially if, like she assumed, he didn't feel the same way about her that she did about him. _

"_Kay," he said again as she heard him take a step towards her. But she didn't let him finish talking; she was too embarrassed. "We're done for today, right?" Kayla asked, surprised that she sounded so calm when her emotions were really all over the place. When Clint didn't answer, she took his silence as a yes. She walked to the door, keeping her head down, and left. Despite being embarrassed and thinking thoughts about the guy who was training her that she _shouldn't_ be thinking about, she was and she did. Kayla asked herself, _did that just happen? Did he even _want_ that to happen? To evolve?_ She knew she did, even if she shouldn't. She didn't let herself think about the way his voice had cracked when he said her name, or that Clint had said _Kay_ instead of Kayla. She didn't think about hovering over him, their skin touching as warmth rushed through her. Nope, she didn't think about it at all._

_Yeah. _Right.

oOo

Kayla let her head drop and touched the bracelet on her left wrist. Oh, she sure hoped he was alright. She just wanted to see him, the real Clint. Even if it was for a few seconds, or the last time she would. The girl thought that if she could, she would tell him, because without him… she felt empty.

* * *

**_End Note:_ So, I know we aren't having a lot of Clint and Kayla interaction, and we don't quite know about their relationship, but we'll get there. We'll see how they start to have feelings for each other. And hopefully ya'll can see the friendship of Kayla and Coulson, I just want to make that clear.**

_-OnyxRing_


	4. New Waters

_**Author's Note: **_**Big thanks to my first reviewers, who have only brightened my spark for this story! And of course to whomever followed and favorited**** as well! My weekly update, we're meeting Bruce. And to those of you who hopefully get it, these two understand each other, when it comes to isolation at least, which is how their friendship grows. Just a heads up.**

**Okay, so I forgot a few things to mention last week. First of all, I had a bit of a crossover last chapter if you didn't get that. When Coulson mentioned that he went to an expert? Yeah, Charles Xavier everybody! Kayla is technically a mutant, but since they don't have mutants in the Avengers movie, because X-MEN is owned not by the same producers of Avengers, they had to change mutants to"Miracles" - spoilers for Cap 2 - so I decided not to mention it with Kayla, but hopefully you all get it.**

**Second of all, I am basing Clint's character more off of what I have read in the comics. He's more humorous, witty and badass. And he's blonde! I'm making him like a dirty blonde so it's not so different, but blonde none the less - like he's supposed to be. **

**And, I would have put this story in the comics section, but considering that it's based off the Avengers movie, I put it here. And to let you all know, I've seen the movie a whole bunch of gazillion of times and I can basically quote this whole movie - much to my Twin's annoyance. And I read the comics and am proud to say that I am a comic geek as of last Christmas. **

**Alright, well... enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter 4 – New Waters**

As one, they stepped off the ramp. Kayla and Rogers, the two new comers, taking in the new setting around them. "Whoa," Kayla said as she looked around at the equipment and people. This was definitely something she would have to write about in the future, or somewhere she should have gone on a business trip.

Coulson turned his attention to the agent that approached the trio, and the author took her eyes away from the scene around her to focus on the woman who stood in front of her. She had red hair, cropped just short of her shoulders, wavy near the tips. Green eyes peered at each, analyzing. She wore a dark gray leather jacket over an orange shirt, a pair of jeans and a gun strapped to her left thigh. Her back was straight when she paused in front of them, like Kayla had noticed that most of the agents did.

"Romanoff," Coulson said, causing the girl's eyebrows to shoot up. A name she recognized as she studied the agent more carefully. Yes, she had met her before, Kayla knew that now. This was Clint's partner. "I believe you've met Hudson." He paused, his tone changing as he stepped aside. "Captain Rogers."

"Ma'am," the captain acknowledged her.

"Hi," Romanoff said simply, then turned and nodded to Coulson. "They need you on the bridge. They're starting the face trace."

"See you there," Coulson walked in between the captain and Romanoff. Kayla noticed immediately, and all she could do was blink. This was the first time that she had been separated from the older agent since Fury had said so, or rather, commanded her to stay with Coulson. She felt her head fall to one side, and then she slide her gaze away from the retreating agent, only to land on another agent. _Oh, right,_ Kayla thought as she looked at Romanoff, _a new babysitter._

_Or not._ She didn't really seem to notice Kayla, who was standing on right next to her. She only had eyes for the captain, literally. Kayla asked herself if she really saw the two making googly eyes at each other, or if it was just her imagination. Then the agent did glance at her, and the younger flinched. _She can't read minds, can she?_ Kayla wondered. Anything was possible, right? The agent inclined her head, meaning to follow her, and the three began to walk forward.

"It was quite the buzz around here, finding you in the ice." Romanoff returned to her attention to Rogers once again, humor now lacing her voice. "I thought Coulson was gonna swoon."

"Oh, on the ride over, he was embarrassing himself just fine without the swooning," Kayla laughed as she noticed the expression on Rogers' face.

"Did he ask you to sign his Captain America trading cards yet?"

The captain looked at the agent in disbelief. "Trading cards."

"They're vintage," She replied, with a slight mocking of pride. "He's very proud."

"Dr. Banner," The captain said after a moment, clearly changing the subject. Kayla turned at another familiar name. Rogers was looking towards a man in a suit, not in a S.H.I.E.L.D. uniform or formal wear. He was wearing a brown jacket and slacks, with a purple button up shirt underneath. He looked out of place standing there uncomfortably. He responded to his name, waiting for a few men to walk by before approaching them. The two men shook hands.

"Oh, yeah, hi," the doctor looked the captain up and down. "They told me you'd be coming."

The captain squinted in the sun. "Word is you can find the cube."

"Is that the only word of me?" Banner asked, looking around the Hellicarrier.

"Only word I care about."

Dr. Banner nodded, then finally looked at Kayla. She smiled. He, out of the two men standing beside her, seemed he would be more enjoyable, no offense to the captain. But like him, she was a little uncomfortable being around so many people, although the doctor had a different reason than she did. He seemed the most like her; socially isolated, or in his case, just plain old isolated.

"Hi, Dr. Banner," Kayla shook hands with the man. "Kayla Hudson. It's an honor to meet you."

"Yeah, uh, you too," Banner held his hands together in front of himself after the two shook hands. "They brought you in? I mean, I read your file, but…"

Kayla sent a glare towards the spy at the mention of the file, then turned back to Bruce with a nod as he trailed off, then shrugged. "Yeah, they brought me in for my amazing aim, and… other stuff."

Banner nodded, looking around again, still looking uncomfortable. He glanced between the captain and her. "Must be strange for you, all this."

"Well, this is actually kind of familiar," the captain said, his hands sliding into his pockets.

"Well, it's strange for me," Kayla said, crossing her arms over her chest. She found herself walking away from them, towards another quinjet. She watched as two men were close to the wheels of the jet, and then watched as they ran a few yards away. One dropped to a knee as he worked on something, clipping to the floor of the Hellicarrier. The girl was thinking about how everything around her she had seen before, or at least it was similar to some military based movies, when all of a sudden a loud noise rang out. A voice came over the speakers across the base, and off to the side, she heard men running and working.

The girl's head snapped up as she looked around again. More and more people were moving around her. She back tracked to where Romanoff was walking away from the two men. When Kayla reached her, she turned and watched Rogers and Banner with a small smile on her face as the two stepped to the edge of the ship. "What's going on?"

"You might want to step inside. We're about to take off." Kayla heard the water at the edge of the ship splash, and she assumed that they were going to set sail soon. After a few moments, she realized that she was wrong. The ship wasn't moving forward, but it was rising out of the water, gaining altitude. _This is a plane?_ Kayla thought. _Well, the name _ Helicarrier _now makes sense. _Slowly the ship rose out of the water into the air.

She shook her head in disbelief. Things could not be any less normal, could they? Super soldiers, super agents, a raging green monster doctor, a girl who generates glass, and a flying boat. _Yeah._

oOo

"So," Kayla conversationally said. She was walking next to Bruce Banner while Rogers and Romanoff walked side-by-side in front of them. The two were having their own little conversation about Loki, which she had learned earlier, was who had the cube. He had taken both Clint and Dr. Selvig. She heard their voices, while the two in the back hadn't said a word. Kayla decided, why not have a conversation. "Do you read?"

Bruce watched as another agent passed them, his eyes following the man in black until he was a distance behind them, then he turned to Kayla. Brown eyes trained onto her and he nodded. "Right, I heard that you were an author."

"Yup, I've written a few mystery series, on my second right now. I've also written a few other novels about death, love." Kayla shrugged, slipping her hands into her cargo pants pockets. They were some type of design where the dark blue and dark purple faded into each other, and it always made her think of galaxies. The girl was also wearing a black long sleeve shirt that hugged her frame. She wore her hair up in a messy bun, although a few strands had fallen out from all the wind. She wore a little eye liner, and a pair of black converse.

Bruce seemed to nod a lot, she noticed, like he was now. It almost seemed like he was nervous. "To answer your question, yes, I read. But not books. Mostly science… stuff."

Kayla found herself nodding as they walked forward. After a short paused, she looked at the man walking beside her. "Hey, are you okay?"

Bruce smiled, although it looked forced. "Don't worry, I'm not going to spontaneously combust."

"No, well, that's _good._ But that's not what I meant." Kayla sort of felt sorry for the guy. She wondered what it would be like to live his life. "Well, not necessarily. I meant, are you okay, with being here? At S.H.I.E.L.D.?"

"You don't like them." It wasn't a question. Kayla was taken aback, her stride faltered. Bruce smiled, amused now. "Yet, _you're_ here."

"How…" Kayla shook her head as she looked away. She was surprised that he knew that, from a few simple words. "I don't necessarily _not_ like them. I mean, they've been helping me train, been helping me with my powers. But…"

She glanced over at Bruce, whose eyebrows were raised, encouraging her to go on. She was at a loss for words for a few seconds, not quite sure how to phrase what she wanted to say. Finally, she just shook her head and spoke, a small trace of anger in her voice. "They only asked me to join the team because of my powers, because they think I'll be useful in a fight. And ever since I walked through the doors, it's been all about training, training and more training. There's an agent with me wherever I go. I basically _live_ on base. And really," Kayla sidestepped so she was closer to Bruce so she could whisper. "These people are like _robots._ Straight faced, backs-always-straight _robots_. I mean, do these people even have _emotions_?"

Kayla hadn't meant to be funny, but Bruce laughed anyways, shaking his head. He put his hands in his pockets too, amusement dominating his features. She felt a smile trace her lips too. The four were finally ending their walk as they exited the hallway into a room. The far side of the room is what caught her attention first. It was all glass, a straight view out into the sky and water. S.H.I.E.L.D. agents scattered at computers, some moving with files in their hands or devices, all wearing the standard blue of the uniform.

Bruce looked around too, and this time, he was the one who took a step closer to her. His voice lowered as he glanced around. "Trust me, I'm with you on that." He stared at a man as he walked past them, and then raised his eyebrows at the girl as if to prove his point.

Kayla grinned as she looked around and the doctor took a few steps away. Where they came into the room, there was a circular table with computer chairs lined around it. At the end of the platform that took up a third of the room, there was a railing and a set of stairs on each side to lead down to where the computers and the people stood. In the middle of the platform near the railing, there was a small area with a few screens around, and then a catwalk stretched out all the way to the glass at the end of the room. She looked up, and saw that above the doorway they had walked through, there was more glass that looked at hallways stretched around the circular room.

Kayla had made her way towards the table when she heard the Director's voice say "Let's vanish," and then he stood at the end of the table. Bruce and Rogers had also made their way over to the table, and the four of them stood.

"Gentlemen. Hudson." Fury gave a nod to the girl as the captain walked up to him. He pulled something out of his pocket before looking up at the glass and out at the sky, handing something to Fury and walking down the catwalk. Fury held a ten dollar bill in his hand and he smiled as he slipped it into his pocket. He then took a few steps over to Bruce, extending his hand. "Doctor, thank you for coming."

Bruce glanced away, but finally shook his hand. "Thanks for asking nicely." His eyes traveled away from the Director, seeming uncomfortable again. "So, um, how long am I staying?"

"Once we get our hands on the Tesseract, you're in the wind."

"Director," Kayla stepped forward. "How are we with that?"

Fury nodded. He knew exactly what she meant. How were we in locating Clint_,_ was what she was really asking. Kayla had puzzled together that that was the real reason that he had asked her to join the team, because she would help to find Clint. He knew that she was willing to do anything to find Clint, and the more the merrier. Technically, Coulson had been the one to ask Kayla, and she had refused at the time, that is until he mentioned that she wanted to find Clint as much as the rest of them. She was all in.

Speaking of Coulson, Fury gestured off of the platform, straight ahead of Kayla. The three stepped forward, and she looked down to see Coulson, standing by a computer. "We're sweeping every wirelessly accessible camera on the planet. Cell phones, laptops."

Kayla smiled and held a hand up in greeting. Coulson nodded back. It was an encouraging nod. Almost saying, "we'll find him," in that one nod. "If it's connected to a satellite, it's eyes and ears for us."

"It's still not going to find him in time." Kayla turned at the sound of the voice. Agent Romanoff was crouched next to a computer, Clint's picture on the screen. She wondered who the agent meant by _him._ Clint or Loki. She saw the worried look on Romanoff's face.

"You have to narrow your field." That was Banner speaking again. "How many spectrometers do you have access to?"

Fury shrugged, arms folding across his chest. "How many are there?"

"Call every lab you know. Tell them to put the spectrometers on the roof and calibrate them for gamma rays. I'll rough out a tracking algorithm based on the cluster recognition." Bruce had taken off his suit jacket, and was now rolling up the sleeves of his purple button up. "At least we could rule out a few places." He looked up at Fury. "Do you have somewhere for me to work?"

Fury gestured to the agent behind them. "Agent Romanoff? Show Dr. Banner to his laboratory, please."

The redhead nodded, leading the way. "You're gonna love it, Doc. We've got all the toys." The pair walked off, and Kayla watched them leave, walking past two S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. They stood on either side of the bird she now just realized was on the wall. It was the symbol that S.H.I.E.L.D. used for their organization.

Kayla walked away once everyone dispersed. She found herself walking down the small set of stairs, over to where Coulson stood. He saw her coming and he stood straight and turned towards her. He pointed to where Agent Sitwell sat. He was the agent who was working on the face trace. "We're tracking Loki here."

The girl nodded, her gaze flickering over to where Rogers stood, arms crossed over his chest. Kayla looked away, walking closer to Sitwell. She had met him a few times, had gone out to dinner with him and a few other agents, he was a good man. He glanced over his shoulder. "Hey, Hudson."

She smiled, stepping closer and looking down at the screen. This was the guy, the one who was the cause of all of this. A pale face and long black hair. This was Loki.

"How are you doing?" Sitwell asked, smiling up at her.

She shrugged. What could she say? She was fine until she thought about what exactly S.H.I.E.L.D. was getting her into. "Fine, I guess. I just can't wait to be done with this and get everything back to normal."

Sitwell nodded. Now his smile was sad as he looked up at her. "We'll find him."

Everyone at S.H.I.E.L.D. had known that Clint had been the one to train her, so they had spent a lot of time together. She had been assigned to him because of her shards. Clint didn't miss, with a bow, knives, or shooting; that was why they called him Hawkeye. Since Kayla had taken a liking at throwing her shards, he had been the one to teach her how to throw them. What everyone didn't know, or at least she _hoped_ they didn't know, was that he was more than just her teacher. Kayla had started developing feelings for the archer.

No, she was falling for Clint Barton.

oOo

Kayla stood next to the super soldier, leaning back on the railing and the platform behind them. Coulson stood on his other side. The agent was telling him about his trading cards, and Kayla couldn't help but smile. Rogers looked at her as the agent continued to talk. He must feel so awkward right now. Well, she couldn't blame Coulson. Captain Rogers _was_ the world's first superhero; it was hard not to gush over the guy. She remembered the whole base gossiping about Captain America when they found him in the ice. Everybody thought that he was a hero, and he was. Plus, he was pretty attractive, there was no denying that.

"We got a hit," Sitwell called out, his computer making funky noises and screeches. "Sixty seven percent match. Wait, cross match. Seventy nine."

Kayla felt a surge of hope through her body as Coulson stepped forward, looking at the screens. Sitwell clicked a few buttons, but Kayla was frozen. She couldn't move to step forward and look as her mind wandered.

"Location?" Coulson asked, standing beside Sitwell.

"Stuttgart, Germany. Twenty eight Kunenstrasse." A few pictures popped up onto the screen, even a video showing Loki himself. "He's not exactly hiding."

"Captain," Fury's voice rang out above Kayla where he stood on the platform. "You're up."

Rogers nodded. _Here we go_, Kayla thought as she pictured what was about to go down.

"Sir?" Kayla finally spoke up as the captain made his way up the small amount of steps to the platform. She stood up straight, took a few steps forward and faced the Director. The question was unspoken, implied. _What about me?_

Fury stared down at her for a few moments, searching her face. He was probably thinking, _is she ready? Has she had enough training?_ Kayla was wondering that, although she was also thinking that she could be a great asset in a fight. Finally, what seemed like minutes later, Fury nodded. "If Agent Barton's there, bring him in. We need our agent back."

Kayla nodded as her and the captain made their way out of the bridge to suit up. She would find Clint, because she needed her agent back too.

* * *

**_End Note:_ On that note, I would just like to say that I just noticed that I didn't put any flashbacks in this chapter. But, there is one next chapter, a little heartfelt memory of Kayla's. And of course, some action, meeting a few gods and everything.**

_- OnyxRing_


	5. Shoot to Thrill

Happy Birthday to me! Happy Birthday to me! Today I turn eighteen! I'm so very proud of me! (She said in a sing-song voice.) Me and my Twin were born today, and without her, I wouldn't have had started a passion for writing. I don't know where I would be right now if I didn't have Savannah in my life. The best birthday present I could ever ask for is having a twin sister who means the world to me. Thanks for everything, and not just with being my Beta, but for everything! Love you!

_**Author's Note: **_**Wow, thanks to everyone who has favorited and followed my story; this is the third update and I already have a bunch of you guys. Thanks for the unintentional encouragement! **

**Okay, so you should be able to know what is going to happen in this chapter, considering that it's the AC/DC song… you know. So, flashback; a little soft, heartfelt moment between Kayla and Clint. Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter Five – Shoot to Thrill**

On the quinjet for the second time that day, Kayla looked up at Captain America. He was suited up all right. The suit looked good on him, the stars and stripes; the colors of our nation. The shield on his arm made him look like a solider, his weapon of choice. Kayla had never thought that she would actually see an actually superhero in real life, tights and all. It was all so strange and exciting at the same time, and she got to take part in it.

Kayla looked down at herself then and smiled. Coulson had taken her opinion for her uniform to the next level. Black boots and pants. The fun part was the three diagonal rings of pink that wrapped around her legs. One ring above her knee, one below, and the last halfway down her shin. They were the pink color to match the glow of her shards and shield. She wore a tank top, the same fabric armor of the pants. It zipped in the front and hugged her figure. Two pink vertical stripes across the front and back of the tank, and a jacket thrown over that. It wasn't quite leather, but she thought it was nice all the while. Two more rings of pink on the biceps of the jacket, and the sleeves were rolled up just under the elbow. The zipper wasn't centered, but off to the right. On her left breast over the jacket was something she grinned at. Coulson had added it in all by himself, and she was glad of it. He was the first to actually give her the name, even if it wasn't that original. In all caps – in pink letters – the name SHARD was patched into the jacket. It reminded her of what soldiers have on their uniforms. The whole uniform made Kayla ecstatic that it was hers, different from all the uniforms around her; unique.

The girl looked up from her uniform after zipping the jacket up. She found her hand instinctively spinning the bracelet on her wrist. When she realized that she had done it absently, she turned it again so that the metal face turned towards her, on the inside of her wrist. On the metal were two simple circles engraved in. One smaller inside the bigger. It was his symbol. The leather band she hadn't taken off since he had given it to her.

oOo

_The first few months of being at S.H.I.E.L.D., they had been showing Kayla how to use her power. First, by showing her how to meditate to generate her shield. To do that, they showed her the video of her in Pennsylvania, the first video they had of her using her powers. She had been at the cemetery, visiting her father's grave. She remembered screaming at the tombstone, about how her father had done a horrible job raising a child, and then a warmth spreading through her body and farther as tears ran down her cheeks. In the video, the pink shield blasted from her body a few feet away from her, and then was quickly engulfed, shrinking back to her core. Meditation hadn't been working, so they just started the training sessions, making her do obstacles or what if scenarios. Whenever she had gotten frustrated, her shield would wrap around her, almost protectively. _

_Moving onto month two, she started shard training. Kayla had already figured out how to call her shards months before, but had finally gotten a chance to use them in a fighting situation. She would finally learn to protect herself. The girl had tried knife fighting, but couldn't quite get the hang of it, especially because the agent never really gave her a chance. Instead, she had thrown a shard once, anger flowing through her veins. That was when Clint stepped in, becoming her mentor for the rest of her time at S.H.I.E.L.D., even if he was one missions all the time. The two threw knives and shards at each other, and finally, Kayla felt good about her powers. She felt like she could do _something.

_In month four, Kayla was happy to train four times a week, throwing and dodging in the training room. Clint had taken one of her shards and thrown it right back at her. For some reason, Kayla didn't dodge, but instead held her hand up, palm out. The shard hit her, and would have gone through her hand if it hadn't disintegrated. Where it should have gone through her skin and bone, the shard was nowhere to be seen. _

_Month five came around, and after a training session, Clint told Kayla that he was going to be leaving for a mission. That she would have a new training partner for a few days, maybe weeks. "I'm leaving tonight."_

_Kayla stared up at him, the two not as sweaty or breathing as heavily as any other day. _Just a few days, right?What could happen? _"Where?"_

_Clint smiled, but didn't answer right away. Kayla nodded as she looked down and away, forgetting that he wasn't supposed to talk about it or any other mission. After all, she wasn't part of S.H.I.E.L.D.; she only trained under them so they could keep an eye on her. But he surprised her by saying, "Paris."_

_Kayla blinked, watching as his muscles moved as he worked in his bag for a minute. She shrugged. "Can't be that exciting." Kayla realized that she was stalling, stretching their last few minutes together before he left. Also that she was worried about him, because of the time frame of the mission. _

"_Probably not. Just a bunch of tourists. I'm back-up for my partner this mission." Clint shrugged. The two stood there in silence, neither looking at the other; anywhere but. Kayla saw him tap his fingers against his thighs and nod._

"_Okay, well, have fun. Don't break a leg." Kayla started to turn away, trying not to make the situation weird or awkward. He could leave, and she couldn't stop him. She didn't want him to find out her feelings for him, to make things awkward between the two, although she always found herself blushing when he was around. _

_Clint grabbed onto her arm and gently pulled her back. Blue eyes bored into her, making her freeze in place. Clint looked away a few seconds later, looking at the floor, and then his hand. Kayla watched as he slowly let her go and started to untie the bracelet that she always saw on his wrist. The leather band had a small knot opposite the metal, one she hadn't really gotten the opportunity to look at. Then it was off, and Clint held the bracelet in the small distance between them. "I want you to have this."_

"_What? No, I can't, you-"_

_Clint cut her off. "Hudson." His voice was low as he grabbed her left wrist and had already started tying the bracelet there. The leather was warm on her wrist, and Kayla felt herself shiver as Clint's fingers brushed the sensitive area of her skin. When he finished, he held her hand up with his right and then twisted the bracelet so the metal was facing them. Kayla got her first good look at him, seeing two circles etched into the metal. "Keep it safe for me, will you? Until I get back. If you ever lose control, think about what I taught you, our training together."_

_Kayla met his eyes and nodded, swallowing hard. She knew he was thinking about the meditation sessions, before Clint, when she had just begun. Even if it was a few months ago, she still remembered like it happened yesterday. She was speechless as she looked up at him, conflicting emotions swirling through her. Clint squeezed her hand before moving away. His arm brushed her shoulder and he finally let go of her hand at the last moment. Then his warmth was gone as he moved away, but her body was telling her something was _wrong._ He was leaving her with something, and he was leaving without something in return._

"_Clint." Kayla called out, her hand flying to her pocket. She felt the familiar object there and closed her fingers around in. She heard Clint stop behind her, and she pulled the object out of her pocket and held it in the palm of her hand. The inch long shard glowed on her skin as she finally made her decision to let it go. It was the first shard that had flown out of her hand, the one in Norway. She had picked it up and carried it with her ever since as a reminder._

_Kayla built up the courage to turn around, make the few steps forward, and hold her hand out. "Here."_

_Clint raised an eyebrow, a small laugh escaping his lips. "It'll only last a few miles or so before it disappears. You know that."_

_The girl shook her head and stepped closer, now her taking his hand and placing the shard there. She spoke softly as she looked down at the small object glowing there. "Not this one. This is the first shard I threw. It's different, somehow."_

_She held his left hand in hers, much like he had to her. Her fingers softly trailed over the edge of the shard, grazing Clint's palm as it glowed on their fingers. "I left it in my loft once when Coulson took me to D.C. When I came back, it was there, sitting on my dresser where I left it. I don't know why, or _how_, but this one is different."_

_Kayla pushed his hand towards his body, then pulled her own hands back to herself. She grinned up at Clint. "Keep it safe for me, until you get back."_

_Clint smiled and closed his fingers around the shard. He left after that, no goodbyes from the archer. He had told her that he hated goodbyes, so she had always kept quiet, and instead had done a simple lazy salute with two fingers to him as he left. She knew that her feelings for the archer weren't just a simple crush, and she hoped that he would one day return the feeling. _

oOo

As she absently spun the bracelet around her wrist, she looked around the jet. She spotted Agent Romanoff looking in her general direction. Her eyes were trained down, and the younger girl followed her line of sight to her own wrist; the bracelet to be exact. Kayla blushed, covering the leather with her hand. When the bracelet was out of sight, Romanoff's eyes snapped up to meet Kayla's for a few seconds, her emotions guarded. Then she turned her attention back out to the sky.

The spy had known exactly what the bracelet was, had probably seen it on Clint's wrist, like, for for_ever_. Kayla couldn't tell it what she got was a glare from the agent, or suspicion, or something else. S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were good at poker faces, so she couldn't tell. Maybe it was sadness, or even hope.

"Captain, you're up." Romanoff called out a few moments later, hitting a few buttons up front. "Loki's in sight."

Kayla stood and walked over to the pilot and agent, looking out. She gasped at the sight in front of them. One man, in gold and green, had made a large amount of people kneel before him. _Kneel._ There were multiple Loki's scattered around them, and the situation almost reminded her of herding sheep.

One man had stood in the middle of the group, an older man. The jet was so far away, yet the scene in front of them didn't look too good.

"Get ready to land." The pilot said.

"No. There's not enough time." Kayla's voice rose as she turned around. "Captain, you have to get out there _now._ The situation doesn't look too good."

Rogers nodded and headed towards the back of the jet. The ramp was already lowering as he pulled the cowl up onto his head.

"Wait," Romanoff said, but Kayla didn't let her finish. "There's no time!"

Rogers jumped, landing the twenty foot drop and ran off. Kayla turned her attention back to the window in the front as she watched the captain run towards the people. Just as Loki raised the spear he was holding in his hand, pointing it towards the elder man. The tip of the spear glowed, but Rogers was there, standing in front of the elder man as a blue beam of light shot towards them. His shield blocked the impact, instead ricocheted back and hit Loki, making him fall flat on his stomach.

"Told you," Kayla muttered, just loud enough for Romanoff to hear her as she turned and walked down the ramp, not waiting any longer. It was only a few feet from the ground when she jumped out and started to run towards the scene. She had forgotten to pull her hair up into a ponytail, so her loose curls were all over the place, and there was no time to fix it.

She watched the captain slowly walk towards Loki as the villain stood up. The two were having a short conversation. She stopped an equal distance between the captain and Loki, almost making a triangle as people in the crowd slowly broke off and ran. She ushered the few around her to hurry and move out of the soon-to-be-battleground. Loki saw the movement, and barely got a chance to look at Kayla before the quinjet was in the air behind Cap. A gun sank out of the bottom of the jet, pointed straight at Loki. Romanoff's voice came over the PA system. "Loki, drop the weapon and stand down."

He did the complete opposite, instead pointing the spear at the quinjet and firing, a blue beam of light shooting across the sky, barely missing as the jet moved at the last second. Rogers threw his shield at Loki, hitting him square in the chest. It ricocheted, the soldier catching it while jumping at the armored man, throwing a punch at his face.

Loki, not seeming too happy, went to hit the captain with his spear, but Rogers blocked the blow with his shield. Loki maneuvered the spear so it pushed the shield up and out of the way before hitting Cap with the end of it, sending the soldier flying. While he fell to the ground a few feet away, Loki laid his eyes on her.

Her own eyes widened when he pointed the spear at her. "Oh, _shit_." She mumbled just as the blue light glowed at the tip of the spear. Kayla took in a deep breath as she saw Loki smirk before the blue light was shooting towards her. She flinched, bringing up her pink shield around her, pushing it out from her core to protect her. The pink glow surrounded her for a split second before the blue blast hit the dome. What she wasn't expecting was to be thrown back a good ten feet, slamming onto her back from the impact. Kayla moaned, pain shooting through her body as she rolled herself onto her side. She saw Loki's head cocked slightly to the side as he looked at her from where he stood.

The ground seemed to spin around her as she sat up, and she brought a hand up to the side of her face feeling the strange warmth there. Blood was left on her fingers as she pulled her hand away. She ignored the pain and glanced up, staring as she watched Loki and Cap fighting, spear and fists. Rogers fell another few yards, and Loki took a few seconds to glare at Kayla where she sat, much farther away than where the captain laid. His spear glowed as he shot another beam at her. She was prepared this time when she brought her shield around her, pushing out a few feet. The beam hit the pink dome, and she felt the pressure push at her, but her shield held this time.

Kayla finally pulled herself up to stand, calling her shield back to her as it slowly shrank towards her until it was gone. That was when music started playing. Music? Kayla looked up at the quinjet, where the music was coming from. AC/DC blasted through the PA system, announcing the arrival of a figure flying through the air towards them; Iron Man. He flew in, arms raised as he shot his thrusters at Loki, making the villain fly back farther than where the captain was slowly standing up. Iron Man landed, slowly standing up from his crouched position, while looking at Loki. He then pointed both arms at Loki, while places on his suit popped open and more weapons pointed at the man.

Rogers was at Kayla's side, a hand on her arm. She waved him off, pointing towards Loki. He nodded and jogged over to stand next to Iron Man as she followed a few paces behind, standing on his other side. She held a shard in each hand.

"Make your move, Reindeer Games."

Kayla heard the hum of the quinjet behind them as it slowly lowered and got closer. Loki's body glowed a few seconds later, before the armor he had been wearing disappeared as he raised his hands in surrender. All the cockiness left with the armor, and the smiles and smirks no more. He didn't look as threatening without that huge helmet on his head, or the gold armor.

Iron Man's suit powered down, at least the weapons that peeked out of his shoulders. Blue lights glowed through the cracks of his suit, looking oddly familiar. "Good move."

Rogers breathed heavily as he relaxed. "Mr. Stark."

"Captain," was the response he got in return, nodding his head. He glanced at Kayla briefly before returning his attention to Loki, his next words directed towards her. "Welcome to the party, New Kid."

"Thanks," Kayla breathed out as she realized what he meant. The party in general, meaning the world of heroes. She had forgotten until that moment that Tony Stark was the man in the suit. That his humor and cockiness didn't fade away in battle, like all her nervousness did when she was focused. At least you could expect the humor from Tony Stark, no matter what.

oOo

Loki's glare was pointed at Kayla, since the two were sitting across from each other. She was directly in his line of sight. Her skin crawled under his stare, and she was aching to move, to go _anywhere _but under that glare. When she tried to stand though, Steve was there pushing her back down. "You hit your head pretty hard. Don't want you passing out on us."

Now, she crossed her arms over her chest, glaring right back at Loki. She was a little upset, partly because she had hopped out of that jet hoping to help, to fight. She felt useless now, after getting hit with blasts while Cap had been the one to do most of the fighting. Mostly because out of all the time they were fighting Loki, they had forgotten to even check for Clint. They couldn't now. Now, they had to get Loki back to the Helicarrier.

In front of her was the man who had taken Clint, who had compromised him, who had taken control of him. This was the man who was the cause of _all of this_. The reason why they had lost Clint, and the reason they were now at _war._

Kayla found herself wondering what he villain across from her was thinking as he stared at her. She wondered what the whole reason was for him being here, on Earth. She let her thoughts wander when she finally heard the captain speak up. He stepped towards Stark, who had taken his helmet off and glanced around. "I don't like it."

Kayla heard them quietly, although not quietly enough, because with a glance at Loki, she knew that he could hear them too. They were both listening, although both were pretending to not be listening as they continued to glare at each other.

"What, Rock of Ages giving up so easily?"

"I don't remember it being that easy." They were still talking quietly, but it was pointless. "This guy packs a wallop."

"Eh, still, you are pretty _spry_, for an older fellow." The two looked at each other, and Kayla could practically _feel_ the tension between the two. "What's your thing, poloties?"

"What?" She could hear the confusion in Rogers' voice.

Stark tilted his head and looked away. "It's like calisthenics." He paused, glancing around the quinjet for a moment before turning his gaze back. He lifted one shoulder in a small shrug. "You might have missed a couple of things. You know, doing time as a Capsicle."

Rogers paused, now annoyed. "Fury didn't tell me he was calling you in," was his comeback.

"Yeah, there's a lot of things Fury doesn't tell you." Stark seemed more serious now. But as the last syllable exited his mouth thunder cracked through the sky.

"Where's this coming from?" Romanoff asked no one in particular. Lightning split the sky, causing the jet to light up in blue and white for a brief moment.

Kayla flinched as the thunder boomed in the sky. Loki leaned forward in his seat, looking up at the ceiling. His mouth hung open, and Kayla's eyebrows lowered as she saw the small trace of fear in his features.

"What's the matter? Scared of a little lightning?" Cap asked from where he stood.

Loki spared him a glance, and Kayla heard his voice for the first time. "I'm not overly fond of what follows." He glanced up at the ceiling again. She was taken aback, hearing his voice and the accent with it. She remembered that he was from a different world, and it shouldn't have surprised her to hear that his accent was strange. His clothes matched the strangeness too.

The quinjet shook then, a thud sounding on the roof. Kayla grabbed ahold of her seat as she shook, trying to stay upright. She hated seat belts, even in times like this, although she wore it at the moment anyways, because she had been falling over from dizziness earlier. Loki - across from her - was strapped in. Out of all the things that should be going through her head right now, the thing she thought about was; _who had been the one to buckle Loki in? Cap, or Stark?_

Another bolt of lightning lit up the sky. Immediately, Stark grabbed his helmet and slid it on over his head. He walked forward and hit the button on the wall that would open the ramp. Cap put his cowl on over his face when Stark walked towards the ramp as it opened.

"What are you doing?" Cap yelled, and all of a sudden, they had a visitor. A man flew in, landing on the ramp, clothed in funky layers like Loki. But where the prisoner wore black and green, this newcomer wore blue, red and silver. He stood up, a hammer in hand, and hit Stark straight in the chest. This sent him flying, taking Cap down with him.

Kayla fumbled with her buckles, trying to get up from stopping the man from doing… whatever he was doing there. She kept glancing up, unable to unbuckle. The man in the blue and red walked towards Loki, fear clearly on the black haired man's face. He grabbed Loki's shoulder and pulled him up, the buckles breaking off around him. He cringed in pain as the blonde grabbed him by the throat, then moved to his shoulder once again, the hammer swinging in his hand before he jumped, taking Loki into the sky with him.

Now, Kayla had finally got unbuckled as she stood up and peered out into the sky. She was a little happy that she was out of the way at the time, so she didn't get thrown around like the two men behind her.

"Now there's that guy." Stark said as he stood.

"Another Asgardian?" Romanoff asked loudly over the wind and thunder that was dying down in volume.

"That guy's a friendly?" Cap asked in disbelief.

"Doesn't matter." Stark said as he walked forward. "If he frees Loki or kills him, the Tesseract's lost."

"Stark! We need a plan of attack."

Stark walked past Kayla, down the ramp, glancing at her as he walked next to her where she stood near the end. "Stark!"

"I have a plan." Stark turned his head briefly to look at her, directing his words at both of them. "_Attack."_ He jumped, thrusters pulling him in the direction the Asgardians went.

"Did he just…" Kayla trailed off as she turned to face Rogers. She watched as he moved to a side of the quinjet, unbuckling a parachute. "Whoa, Cap, I don't-"

She was cut off by Romanoff speaking up again. "I'd sit this one out, Cap."

He continued to pull the parachute onto his back, pulling the straps around him tight. "I don't see how I can."

"These guys come from legend. They're basically gods."

"There's only one god, ma'am, and I'm pretty sure he doesn't dress like that." Cap turned, grabbing his shield.

"Cap, are you sure?" Kayla faced him as he walked down the ramp.

He looked at her, pulling his shield onto his arm. "We can't lose the Tesseract. Or Loki."

After a moment of looking up into his blue eyes, Kayla nodded. Cap nodded back before facing the sky and jumping out.

Kayla stared into the dark sky, the thunder and lightning gone now. She turned and walked back towards the front of the jet, hitting the red button on the right that made the ramp close. When it was sealed shut, she turned to Romanoff. "I think I'll sit this one out."

* * *

**_End Note:_ Pretty self-explanatory chapter. Hope you enojoyed!**

_-OnyxRing_


	6. The Stars in Her Past

_**Author's Note: **_**Thanks to everyone who followed/favorited/reviewed! At least I know _some_ people like my fic! **

**Not a real exciting chapter, but there are a few moments in this one. With Tony and a flashback with Clint. There's also a little insight into Kayla's past, although it's not exciting. Actually quite the opposite. Tried to get a bonding moment going on. Tell me if I succeeded!**

**Crystallene: Just wanted to say thanks again for the little spelling mistake info! Still amused by that! **

* * *

**Chapter Six – The Stars in Her Past**

"They flew back east. We should head back that way." The pilot nodded at Romanoff's words.

As the pilot and the agent maneuvered the jet around, the three slowly scanned the forest floor. Kayla thought about what had happened a few moments ago, when something clicked in her brain. "Wait. I know him! Well, know _of_ him." Romanoff looked back at her in confusion. Kayla nodded, pointing at the sky. "The blonde, that's Thor."

"How do you know that?" The elder woman looked at her suspiciously. Kayla knew that the two weren't getting off to a great start. She had already snapped at the agent in Germany, interrupted her, had gotten weird glances from the bracelet, and now knew information that she shouldn't know.

"Clint," She paused, looking away for a few seconds. A flood of emotions washed over her at the mention of him. She mentally shook her head. "He told me about the mission in New Mexico. Thor, he's a friendly."

"You're not supposed to know about that." The redhead said after a few moments of silence. Kayla shrugged. The cockpit was silent again, until the elder woman pointed down at a flash of light in the forest. "There."

A surge of blue light flashed through the forest, a gust of wind as trees were pushed down flat to the floor. When the dust and smoke cleared away, Kayla muttered, "Oh…"

The quinjet lowered to the ground, and Kayla put the ramp down, sliding out. She jogged over to where the blast came from, a shard in hand. She was late again, useless. Iron Man, Cap and Thor all stood together. "Boys," She heard herself call out. "Are we done playing?"

A few moments of silence stretched out as Thor looked around at the three. Then, he swung his hammer around and took to the sky, only to come back a few moments later with Loki. Kayla pointed over her shoulder with her thumb. "Jet's this way."

No one moved, so Kayla did the honors of turning first, mentally rolling her eyes and walked back the way she came. When she got back up to the jet, she took a sat in the same seat she sat in earlier, and the boys walked in, putting Loki in the same seat he was in; across from Kayla. She laid her head back, exhausted, even if she had barely fought in Germany.

Cap and Stark stood by the cockpit again, and Thor stood by Loki, his hammer on the floor of the jet. He had long blonde hair, curly from the wind, and stubble across his jaw and chin. Blue eyes flickered around at the three. Kayla finally found her voice. "Thor."

His blue eyes swung towards her, and Stark and Rogers both looked at her as well. "Hi." She smiled hesitantly.

"You know me?" His voice was a deep baritone, and was loud in the small space.

"I know _of _you." Kayla held up a hand. "I was told of New Mexico." She let her hand drop and ducked her head for a minute. With a glance over at Stark and Cap she continued. "Look, Loki has taken the Tesseract, and he's also taken an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. We're just trying to get them back."

"I am sorry for what Loki has done. But if I know my brother," he glanced down at the man in the green and black, who smiled disturbingly, blue eyes gleaming, "He plans to use trickery. Deception." With a pause, his eyes glanced around again. "He says he doesn't know where the Tesseract is."

"Well," Cap spoke up, shifting his weight as he crossed his arms over his chest and sent a glare towards Loki. "We will find it. One way or another."

The quinjet was silent as it flew over the ocean. After ten minutes or so of quiet conversation, Rogers took a seat down the bench from Kayla, and she took the opportunity to stand up by the cockpit. The sky was dark, and it was hard to see any of the stars, although she could see the brightest of the bunch. Stark stood a few feet away from her, turned so he could keep an eye out for the two Asgardians, as a conversation behind them started between Thor and Cap.

"You know," she said quietly, earning a glance from him. The stars brought back memories, and she couldn't stop herself from speaking. She didn't even know why she was telling the billionaire anything. "I use to know every constellation." She saw his eyes, how they weren't quite paying attention, and she couldn't blame him. But Kayla continued talking, not realizing that this was a moment that Tony Stark would look at her like she was more than just a girl on a team with strange abilities. "My father put me in a private school, although all the kids there were related to big business partners and lawyers. I was just a daughter of an author, not really anyone important. Anyways, he thought that I should learn useless things like the constellations, or the name of every bone in the body, and other stuff that would get me nowhere in life.

"My father didn't raise me. Not really. My aunt did mostly, until she thought I was finally old enough to put up with him myself. Even though he taught me everything I know about being an author, something that I love, he didn't do much else for me." Kayla felt her hands clench into fists by her side, old memories surfacing of her time with her father, who ignored her, who didn't go to the park and play with her, who barely stepped out of the house. "But he got me interested in the stars and the galaxies around us. It's always so interesting to discover new planets and systems."

Kayla glanced down from the sky, to the glowing buttons in the cockpit. She realized then that not only had Stark been listening to her sob story, but the pilot and Romanoff had too. "He was a horrible father, and growing up without a family is hard. I wouldn't wish it on anyone." The girl felt small then, as she looked up at Tony Stark for a moment, seeing his brown eyes gaze at her, before she looked back out to the sky. "Sorry I bothered you with my sad childhood story," she said as she turned away to retake her seat on the bench. She had no idea what had come over her, to cause her to talk about that part of her.

The rest of the ride back to the Helicarrier was filled with Thor's deep voice and Rogers' not-as-deep voice as Kayla thought about her past, wondering what it would have been like if she had grown up with a mother.

oOo

More than a dozen S.H.I.E.L.D. agents escorted Loki through the ship. Romanoff led them, while Kayla, Rogers, Stark and Thor followed behind. Stark broke off, heading in a different direction, to take off his Iron Man suit she assumed. The rest passed the lab that Bruce was in, and that was when she broke off, Kayla slipping through the door. "Hey."

The doctor pointed through the glass into the hallway, his gaze glued to where Loki had passed. "Was that…"

"Loki?" Kayla nodded and walked towards him, looking at him over whatever was in front of him. "Yeah, that was him. He didn't have the Tesseract with him." She didn't know why, but she was comfortable in his presence, something she didn't usually feel around strangers. But with Bruce, it was nice.

Bruce pointed to a few of the screens in the room. "I'm still looking."

Kayla nodded, taking a few steps backward as she brushed a strand of hair out of her face. "We're meeting at the bridge."

"Okay, I'll be right there." Bruce nodded, and Kayla slipped out the doors, heading down the hall. She was surprised when she took a few steps forward that Agent Romanoff was in step with her, right by her side. She thought that the agent had been with Loki.

"We need to talk." The agent said, surprising Kayla again.

"About what?" Kayla stared straight ahead as she continued to walk, thinking about the day's events. "We got Loki, Bruce is still looking for the Tesseract, and-"

"Not that," Romanoff reached forward, her fingers wrapping around Kayla's arm, pulling her to a stop and causing her to spin around. Then, she jerked the girl's arm up, her left hand high at eye level as the agent stared into hazel eyes. "This."

The bracelet. With everything that was going on, the other woman wanted to talk about a bracelet? Kayla found herself rolling her eyes. They had things to do, like find the Tesseract, like finding Clint and stopping a war. "We're at _war,_ and you want to talk about a bracelet."

The redhead seemed like she hadn't heard the girl, taking a step forward. She released her fingers from Kayla's arm and let it fall to her side. "Why do you have it?"

Kayla took a step back, rubbing her arm where the other woman's grip had been tight. She looked up into green eyes, seeing anger. _What happened to being straight-faced?_ "He," she paused, looking away. Her eyes flickered across the wall behind the agent, thinking about a month ago. "He gave it to me."

"What do you mean, he _gave_ it to you?" The agent stepped forward. "He hasn't taken that bracelet off, _ever_. Not in three years."

She looked down at the bracelet, feeling her eyes widen in surprise. _Three years?_ Her finger ran over the metal piece. "I- he gave it to me, right before he left for Paris, to _you._ Told me to keep it safe for him, until he got back. But that was over a month ago."

She didn't know why she continued talking; she didn't want to. Something in her kept her mouth moving. This occurred more now, with this team, than it had ever in her life, the not being able to stop talking. She saw the agent's eyes flicker across her face, and the brunette took another step back. She didn't want to talk about the moments she shared with Clint. But, now that she had started, she couldn't stop. "When he got back, a few days later, I tried to give it back to him. He said no, that I should keep it. So I have."

After a few moments of the woman staring at each other, Romanoff ducked her head. The moment that the two broke eye contact, Kayla snapped. Emotions flooded over her; pain, hope, loss. She moved, walking around the other woman in a fast pace so she couldn't see the tear that slid down the brunette's cheek.

oOo

They all stood or sat at the table in the bridge, except Stark, a small distance apart. None of them had changed out of their uniforms. Thor had removed a few pieces of his – the red cape and the silver armor that had lined his arms – and was now standing by the table, a hand on his chin in thought.

"… a mindless beast." Kayla hadn't been looking down at the live feed of Loki on the table. She couldn't look at him. Now that she was finally away from eye sight, away from that glare and ice eyes, she didn't plan on looking at him anytime soon. She sat in a chair, idly spinning a few inches before spinning back. The girl couldn't sit still, not with Loki's spiel running through her head. What he had said last made her eyes flicker up at Bruce. He was standing behind a chair, his glasses on the bridge of his nose and his arms crossed. He looked up for a moment before looking down at the screen in front of him again. "Makes play he's still a man. How _desperate_ are you?" A pause and he continued. "You call on such lost creatures to defend you."

_Lost creatures._ Did he mean the team? Kayla closed her eyes, wondering if that had been meant for _her_. She sure felt lost most of the time, especially after Norway. She wasn't sure where she belonged anymore, learning the things she was, knowing that she had only been recruited due to the fact that she wasn't entirely human. _Creatures. _The girl manifested shards and a shield for a living, she could be classified as a _creature_, but so could Bruce, a mindless beast apparently. Their team was a mess.

Fury's voice came through the feed, who had escorted Loki to the container he was in now. Kayla opened her eyes, settling them on Thor across from her on the other side of the table. "How desperate am I? You threaten my world with war. You steal a force you can't hope to control. You talk about peace, and you still kill because it's _fun._ You have made me very desperate. You might not be glad that you did."

"Oh," Loki's voice chilled her to the bone. "It burns you to have come so close. To have the Tesseract. To have power, _unlimited_ power. And for what? A warm light for all mankind to share? And then to be reminded what real power is."

There was a pause, and then Fury spoke up again. "Well let me know if real power wants a magazine or something."

Kayla couldn't help the small smile that slipped onto her lips, even though she shivered from Loki's words. She heard a beep as the screen in front of Romanoff blinked out.

"He really grows on you, doesn't he?" Bruce joked.

"Loki's going to drag this out." Cap said, and Kayla's eyes flickered over to him where he sat on her right. His own eyes looked up, to Thor. "So. Thor, what's his play?"

"He has an army, called the Chitauri," Thor's deep accented voice responded. "They're not of Asgard or any world known. He means to lead them against your people. They will win him the Earth in return, I suspect, for the Tessearact."

Thor turned to the table, eyes landing on each of the Earthlings apologetically. Kayla's eyes flickered to Maria Hill, who now stood behind the god, listening in.

"An army," Cap said in disbelief. Kayla felt the same. She wondered if this was all just a dream, that is she just woke up it would all be gone. Cap looked over at Romanoff and then Kayla. "From outer space."

"So he's building another portal." Bruce removed his glasses and held them in his hands. "That's what he needs Erik Selvig for."

"Selvig?"

It wasn't quite a question, but Bruce answered Thor anyways. "He's an astrophysicist."

"He's a friend."

Kayla was taken aback. Had Thor met the doctor in New Mexico? If so, that was something Clint hadn't told her about. She had met Selvig a few times at S.H.I.E.L.D., had maybe even been recruited because of New Mexico. (Add)

"Loki has him under some kind of spell," Romanof paused, looking at Kayla for a split second before looking away. "Along with one of ours."

The mention of Clint made Kayla uncomfortable. When she had first sat at the table, the redhead had slid her a file and told her to read. It was about Clint. He _had_ been in Germany, and she read about what he had done. That Loki had done what he did to a man's eye so that Clint could break into the building to steal that Iridium. She rubbed her arms, her arms now cold from taking off her jacket, although it wasn't from the weather. _Would he remember? _Loki was putting him through so much, and Kayla wondered if he would get better, if he would _remember._

"I want to know why Loki let us take him," Cap's voice brought her back to the table. He looked around at everyone. "He's not leading an army from here."

"I don't think we should be focusing on Loki." Bruce gestured to the screen in front of him, turning back to Cap. "That guy's brain is a bag full of cats. You can smell the crazy on him."

"Have care how you speak." Thor took a step forward again, a trace of anger in his voice. "Loki is beyond reason, but he is of Asgard. And he's my brother."

"He killed eighty two people in two days." Romanoff stated.

"He's adopted?"

Kayla spoke up for the first time, tapping her fingers on her arms as she continued to spin her chair slightly. "You're right, Cap. He can't do anything in that cage. So what's the point?"

"I think it's about the mechanics." Dr. Banner looked at Kayla for a moment before meeting the eyes of the others. "Iridium. What do they need the Iridium for?"

"It's a stabilizing agent." Kayla spun in her chair at the new voice. Tony Stark walked into the bridge, minus the Iron Man suit. He was wearing a dark suit and a blue button up shirt and a gray tie. Walking in next to him was Agent Couslon. Tony turned to the agent, quietly telling him something, gesturing with his hand. Coulson nodded back before pointing to the right, where he walked to stand far behind Rogers, file in hand. Kayla hadn't seen him all day, since they took a trip to Germany.

"Means, the portal won't collapse on itself like it did at S.H.I.E.L.D." Kayla watched the billionaire walk forward, making his way towards Thor. The image of the base crumbling to the ground took up the girl's vision before she blinked and it disappeared. Tony held up a hand to Thor, lightly hitting him on the shoulder as he said, "No hard feelings, Point Break, you got a mean swing."

Kayla watched the expression on the god's face as he looked at his shoulder where the billionaire hit him before turning to the man.

"Also," Stark passed Hill, who crossed her arms over her chest watching him go by. "Means the portal can open as _wide_ and stay open as _long_ as Loki wants." Tony paused at the end of the platform, where the Director usually stands. Kayla watched Hill roll her eyes.

"Uh, raise the missy mess," Stark gestured to the left. "Ship the tops house," he gestured to the right.

To Kayla, it sounded like gibberish. She found herself rolling her own eyes and shaking her head before spinning her chair again.

"That man is playing Galaga!" Tony raised his arm and pointed across the bridge to the right in that general area. "Thought we wouldn't notice, but we did." Then he paused, raising a hand to his face. "How does Fury even see these?"

"He turns." Hill answered.

"Sounds exhausting." Tony turned then, walking over to a screen and laid his finger on the glass, touching it in a few places. He moved to the next and touched a few more. "The rest of the raw materials Agent Barton can get his hands on pretty easily. Only major component he still needs is a power source, of high energy density. Something to, kick start the cube."

At the mention of Clint, for who knows how many times that day, Kayla's eyes followed all of Stark's movements, right up until the moment Stark snapped his fingers and clapped his hands together. She felt her stomach drop, thinking about how he was right in the middle of this whole mess. _Get ahold of yourself,_ she thought to herself as she spun in her chair again. _Seriously._

"When did you become an expert on thermonuclear astrophysics?" Hill questioned, seeming confused.

"Last night." Tony paused, looking around when it became silent in the room. "The packet? Selvig's notes? The extraction theory papers? Am I the only one who did the reading?"

"I did. Just didn't understand any of it." Kayla announced to no one in particular. It wasn't exactly a reading anyways. She had tried her best to read the file, but there were too many unknown words, and diagrams that didn't make sense. Stark pointed at her, like he was going to say something, but Cap interrupted. She wondered what he would have said.

"Does Loki need any particular power source?"

"He'd have to heat the cube to 120 million Kelvin just to break through the Coulomb barrier." Bruce paused behind Cap.

"Unless Selvig has figured out how to stabilize the quantum tunnel effect." Tony said, walking a few paces towards Bruce.

"Well, if he could do that he could achieve heavy ion fusion at any reactor on the planet."

"_Finally_, someone who speaks English." Tony said, looking around the table as if to say "come on," and walked over to Bruce.

Cap sat forward, mouth hanging open. "Is that what just happened?"

"It's good to meet ya, Dr. Banner." Bruce nodded as the two shook hands. Tony pointed. "Your work on anti-electron collision is unparalleled. And I'm a huge fan of the way you lose control and turn into an enormous green rage monster."

Bruce looked down, clearly a little upset. "Thanks."

"Dr. Banner is only here to track the cube," Fury's voice rang out as he entered the room, and Kayla pushed her feet on the floor to turn again. "I was hoping you might join him."

The two brunettes glanced at each other.

"I'd start with that stick of his. It may be magical, but it works an awful lot like a Hydra weapon." Cap turned to the two men. For some reason, Kayla found it annoying that he said _stick_, considering that it practically _broke_ her, if it weren't for her own shield.

"I don't know about that, but it is powered by the cube." Fury's voice grew, now he too sounded annoyed. "And I'd like to know how Loki used it to turn two of the sharpest men I know into his own personal flying monkeys."

"Monkeys?" Thor's eyebrows furrowed. "I do not understand."

"I do!" Cap exclaimed, his finger shooting into the air. He looked happy, a small smile on his lips that faded as he looked around at the others. No one was amused except him. "I-I understood that reference."

Kayla rolled her eyes. She never did like that movie for some reason growing up. Now she liked it even less.

"Shall we play, Doc?"

"This way, sir." Bruce led Tony away, down the hall.

Kayla watched Romanoff and Fury walk over to Hill and the three conversed, and she finally stood. The girl slowly walked, until she was standing next to Thor. The Asgardian looked down at her. "Kayla?"

"Yes, that's right." She liked that he called her by her name, instead of something she couldn't even think of. He was foreign, after all. She smiled up at him. On most guys, the long hair would freak a woman out, but on the blonde, it fit him. "So, I was wondering if I could talk to you."

The blonde nodded, stepping closer to her. "Yes. Of course."

"I've been a little late to the party, as Stark put it." She rolled her eyes at the mention of the engineer. Meeting his blue eyes again, her smile grew. "I was wondering if you could tell me a little about Asgard."

Thor seemed to relax then, and even perk up a little at the mention of hi home planet. It was good, to distract him and her both, even for a little while. To keep the thoughts of cold and ice blue eyes from her mind. "Of all the nine realms…"

Thinking about it later, Kayla replayed the story Thor told. Something Thor said about Asgard – during a story of one of the realms - reminded her somehow, of Clint. Memories played in her head.

oOo

_The two sat on the rooftop of Kayla's loft, the one that S.H.I.E.L.D. let her stay in while she was in New York. Clint sat beside her, legs hanging off the edge of the building as his arms rested against the railing in front of him. She was sitting the same way, although she had made sure that she was back a couple of inches farther than him, so she was careful not to fall._

_Clint had driven over, checking on her because of earlier. Kayla had shown up for their training session, almost at the brink of tears. When he asked what was wrong, she had asked for a favor. "Sure," he had said. She ran her hands through her hair frantically. "I just need today off. I can't think _today_."_

_When she didn't answer the door, he called her cell, and she told him that she was on the roof. They sat together, staring out at the city and the stars around them. They had watched the sun set, and the sky darken. It was the first time the two were able to just talk, about anything and nothing. They talked about current events, about the weather, about movies. What they didn't talk about was S.H.I.E.L.D., or training. The two joked around and laughed, sitting up on that rooftop for hours._

_Kayla finally built up the courage to talk about why she needed that favor. "Clint."_

"_Yeah," He replied, still staring out at the sky. When she didn't answer, he looked at her, and she nodded._

"_Today is Tessa's birthday."_

"_Oh." His voice turned soft and understanding. She closed her eyes and listened to the sound of the wind around them._

"_She would have been twenty one today." She choked on the last words, feeling a tear slide down her cheek. Before she knew what was happening, Clint wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her to his side in a hug. "Shh."_

_Once her head hit his shoulder, Kayla couldn't help the tears that spilled out of her eyes, and her breath hitched. "Kayla, you're not alone."_

_She was grateful. She was happy that someone other than herself knew of the girl, even if it was from stories or mentions of the girl. Kayla was happy that Clint was there for her, on that day. She didn't have anyone else, except maybe Coulson. But he hadn't been the one to stop by to see if she was okay; Clint had, and she was grateful._

_She cried for a few minutes, and when her cheeks were dry, he continued to hold her as they looked up at the stars around them, the wind blowing through their hair and clothes. The only sounds were the cars down on the streets below, and the sounds of their breathing._

* * *

**_End Note: "_Stars in her past..." Anybody get it? Anyone? **

**Well, I don't feel like this chapter is too exciting, so I'm going to post a second one today! Wee!  
**

_-OnyxRing_


	7. Everything

I updated two chapters this week for those of you who automatically skip to the last chapter on updates! Go back to chapter six!

**_Author's Note:_ Don't worry, you didn't miss anything from chapter six to here, I kind of jumped a little. But you guys are lucky, I posted two chapters today! I figured, chapter six was a little boring, so, why not? **

**I'm almost done writing this story. I know, it's not that long and I only have a few more chapters to write - not including the few I already have completed - but I already have a sequel planned and everything! It's because I'm basing this off the movie, so when the movie ends, this story will end. I'm hoping the second book will be twice as long though.**

**Thank you all for sticking with me! I hope you're all enjoying this story!**

* * *

**Chapter Seven - Everything**

Confused, Kayla stepped into the lab with a glance back down the hallway. She heard Stark say as she entered, "…and you just might."

Both of the men glanced at her as she moved closer to them. "Just ran into Cap. What's his problem?" She obviously missed something.

"Oh, you know." Stark waved a hand in the air in her direction. "Just you and your agent friends keeping secrets." He moved from the screen to raise his eyebrows at the girl.

"_What?_"

"Tony, she's not with S.H.I.E.L.D." Bruce said from where he stood at his own screen. "She already told me that she doesn't even _like_ them."

"But she's bunking with them." Tony accused. "You must favor them."

"_Excuse_ me?" Kayla stepped forward, anger slipping into her voice. Who could blame her? She was already on edge from the whole Clint's-been-abducted-by-a-crazy-person situation, and he just set her off. She stared at Stark through the glass screen in between them. "I'm _only_ training under S.H.I.E.L.D. because nobody else _offered_. I was so scared when I found out how much of a _freak_ I was, until I got some help. And actually, although it's none of your business, I planned on leaving after we found the cube. _So,_ why don't we stick to that, huh?"

"What are you _really_ doing here, New Kid?" The billionaire stepped around the screen to take a few steps towards her.

"I'm here because of Norway! That's how I got my powers!" Memories of blood washed over her. She thought about holding the girl in her arms, the life draining out of her, the two bodies across from them. Kayla's fists clenched at her sides. "I'm here to _fight_."

"There's nothing to fight, at least not yet. So why'd they bring you in, if you can't _really_ help find the Tesseract?" Tony pulled a blueberry out of the package he was holding in his hand and popped it into his mouth. He talked around it. "Cap's here because he's dealt with it before. Me and the doc here are tracking it. Point Break is helping with his brother, and the rest of the people here are with S.H.I.E.L.D. So, if you're not with S.H.I.E.L.D., then why are you here?"

"Fury asked me to come in, and if it means finding Cl-" Kayla closed her mouth before she could finish. She could already feel a blush creeping onto her cheeks. She was still angry, _pissed_ even.

"Oh," Tony frowned, walking back to his screen. "_That's_ why you're here. For Barton."

"Not with S.H.I.E.L.D., like she said." Bruce said softly, shaking his head.

She uncurled her fingers from a fist and turned towards Bruce, the anger slowly suppressing. "Doctor, is there anything I can do?"

He shook his head. "Not unless you know anything about physics."

Kayla walked over to the window that viewed the bottom of the Helicarrier, the opening into the sky. "Nope. I'm just an author." The girl hoisted herself up onto the counter and let her legs dangle off the edge. She examined the scepter, lying a few feet away from her. "What good is that, anyways? Books don't save lives."

"Why waste your time writing books then?"

"Stark," Kayla looked up at Bruce who defended her. His eyes narrowed at Stark.

"What? She's the one who said it."

She wasn't angry anymore. Instead, she was sad as she thought about her past, of being an author. "I use to _love_ it. Writing was my whole life. But I haven't touched a pencil or a keyboard in eight months and eleven days. Not since Norway."

Stark raised an eyebrow, surprised that she had counted the days.

"What happened in Norway?" Kayla looked at the doctor. He seemed confused as he turned from his screen to look at her. "Sorry, but your file just says that's when your powers first manifested. Because of an, uh, emotional outburst."

"Sounds familiar," Tony muttered with a glance at Bruce, who only rose an eyebrow in response.

"So, what happened?"

Kayla met the eyes of the doctor before glancing at Stark. "Everything."

oOo

After she chatted with the two in the lab, Kayla left to find a shower and a change of clothes. A door had been labeled _Locker Room_, and had a pink woman on the door. Down the hall was one that matched with a blue man. She felt a whole lot better now that she was clean. As she was blow drying her hair at one of the many mirrors, she looked at the small cut on her forehead, up by her hairline. She wondered if it would scar, even if it was a small cut. Kayla looked at herself in the mirror, surprised. It had been weeks since she had done just that, and the person in the mirror staring back at her was the same… yet so different. She looked the same, but she didn't _feel_ the same. Ever since Fury had said, "Barton's been compromised," and "we are at war," she had felt like a huge weight had been dropped onto her shoulders. Her whole time at S.H.I.E.L.D., and she hadn't been in a real fight or even on a real mission. But now, joining this team, she was scared.

Kayla had watched S.H.I.E.L.D. crumble to the ground with people still inside the base. She had gone through hearing that Clint had been brainwashed, she had been hit with a blast from Loki's scepter and watched him stand above a group of people. And now the threat of an army of an alien race hung over them all and they were expected to protect Earth. She could do that, or at least try, as long as she was in an actual battle. As long as she was fighting, shards in hand, she could become a warrior. Confident and ready to kick ass. All her worries and doubts faded away when she held her shards, and she could become someone else.

She finished blow drying her hair without looking at herself. Once she was done, she replaced the tool when she where she found it, looked at herself one last time, then walked over to the bench and sat. She pulled her socks on, then laced up her boots. She wore the pants of her uniform, and thought about wearing the top but changed her mind. Instead, she pulled on a gray long sleeve shirt and exited the locker room. She had grabbed an apple that was sitting in a bowl, and started down the hallway, biting into the fruit. She had found the bowl in a random room she passed through.

Back in the lab, she sat on the counter again, watching the two men – did they both count as scientists? Could Stark be classified as one? Or geniuses? They had already started tracking the cube, and were now talking about something in hushed voices. Too bad Kayla overheard. "You're hacking into S.H.I.E.L.D.?"

Tony spun around, letting out a breath of air. "Yes, now are you going to go tattle tale on us?"

"_Hell_ no." Kayla shook her head as both men looked surprised. She took another bite of her apple before pointing at them. "Go for it."

"Rogers got all upset when he found out and stormed out." _Hm_, she thought, _that's why he marched out of here and practically crushed me in the hall. _Kayla nodded. She was slowly getting more and more upset with the agency. "Well, I think you guys have the right idea. They're hiding something."

"See, Doc, even _she_ thinks so." Tony pointed at her before crossing his arms. He leaned against the counter farther down than where she was, as Bruce leaning against the table that the scepter was on.

Kayla fiddled with the small device in her ear, the one that Coulson had given her right after she had left the bridge. He had told her to keep it on the frequency that it was on, that it was the frequency for the team. Meaning Coulson, Romanoff and Fury, maybe even Hill, and it was probably hooked in with Tony's suit.

The screen in front of Stark beeped once, and he sat up straighter. Kayla finished her apple and threw the core in the garbage can. "What, are you in?"

"What are you doing, Mr. Stark?" Startling Kayla, Fury walked into the lab, his stride meaningful as he glanced around at the three.

"Uh, kinda been wondering the same thing about you."

"You're supposed to be locating the Tesseract."

"They are." Kayla piped in, sliding off the counter and walking around the counter.

"The model's locked, and we're sweeping for the signature now. When we get a hit, we'll have a location within a half a mile." Bruce said. Kayla smiled as he pointed across the room to the screen that was doing the tracking. Bruce leaned back, confident. Now, they were one step closer to ending this thing.

"Yeah, we'll get your cube back. No muss no fuss." Stark said. The screen beeped again in front of Stark as his finger swiped across the screen. Kayla stood across from him, Bruce and Fury on her sides as they stood in a wide circle, Fury farther away. Tony asked, "What _is_ Phase Two?"

A loud _clang_ rang out in the room, causing all of them to turn at the sound. Rogers laid down some sort of gun on the table across the room, then walked forward. "Phase Two is S.H.I.E.L.D. uses the cube to make _weapons._ Sorry, computer was moving a little too slow for me."

Fury forward to reassure the captain. "Rogers, we gathered everything related to the Tesseract, this does not mean-"

"I'm sorry Nick," Tony interrupted, spinning the screen to face the others. "What were you lying?"

Kayla stepped forward, taking in the sight. The screen held exactly what Rogers had said; weapons. She couldn't believe her eyes. She had spent six months of her life training under these people just to have them ready for a great war to happen. Before anyone could say anything, Thor and Romanoff walked into the lab. Kayla felt a surge of anger run through her. "Great. Family reunion. I can't _believe_ this!"

"I was wrong, Director. The world hasn't changed a bit."

Bruce pointed at the redhead, looking a little hurt. "Did you know about this?"

She stepped forward, and Bruce stepped around Kayla, in between her and Tony. Romanoff was on her right, a few feet away. "You want to think about removing yourself from this environment, Doctor?"

Bruce laughed, humorless. "I was in Calcutta. I was pretty well removed."

"Loki is manipulating you."

"And you've been doing what, exactly?"

"You didn't come here because I bat my eyelashes at you."

"Yes, and I'm not leaving because suddenly you get a little twitchy."

Kayla spoke up, looking at Romanoff and then Fury. "Why the _hell_ is S.H.I.E.L.D. building weapons of mass destruction using the Tesseract?"

"I'd like to know that. Please, enlighten us." Bruce pointed at the screen with his glasses.

"What are you trying to do, start World War III?" Kayla asked, and a small pause filled the room.

"Because of him," Fury raised his arm, pointing at Thor.

"Me?" The god asked, confused.

"Last year, Earth had a visitor from another planet, who had a grudge match that leveled a small town." Fury paused. After glancing at Kayla, he turned to Bruce, and then Rogers. "We learned that not only are we not alone, but we are hopelessly, _hilariously_ outgunned."

"My people want nothing but peace for your planet." Thor defended from where he stood next to Romanoff.

"But you're not the only people out there, are you? And you're not the only threat." The Director turned, addressing everyone. "The world's filling up with people who can't be matched. That can't be controlled."

Rogers spoke, clearly angry. "Like you control the cube?"

"Your work with the Tesseract is what drew Loki to it, _and_ his allies." Thor took a step forward. "It is a signal to all the realms that the Earth is ready for a higher form of war."

"A higher form?" Cap asked.

"You forced our hand. We had to come up with-" Fury was interrupted.

"A nuclear deterrent?" Tony asked, now sarcastic. "'Cause that always calms everything right down."

"Remind me again how you made your fortune, Stark?" Fury retorted.

"I'm sure if he still made weapons, Stark would be neck deep-" Cap had taken a step towards the billionaire, who also interrupted him.

"Wait, wait. Hold on. How is this now about me?"

"I'm sorry, isn't everything?" Rogers said as he stepped forward and Stark did the same.

"I thought humans were more evolved than this." Thor stated, looking unamused.

Everyone then started to talk over one another. It was impossible to keep track of all the banters. Kayla heard Romanoff say something about threat levels, and Bruce asking if Captain America was on that threat list. Kayla took the moment to step forward, pointing a finger at said person. "Yeah, you know what, it _is_ your fault."

"My fault?" The captain questioned.

"If it weren't for you and you're little buddy, Howard," Kayla looked at Stark, "Yes, that's right, _your_ father. If he hadn't been digging around with the Tesseract in the first place, this wouldn't have happened!"

"What are you even _doing_ here?" Cap's blue eyes questioned, anger falling off the guy. "You're just a kid playing at being a hero."

Anger boiled through her blood, but with a shake of her head, she turned to Thor, taking a few steps toward the god. She didn't get another word out as she shook her head again, clearing her mind of words she didn't want to say. She rubbed a hand across her face, feeling dizzy all of a sudden; out of control.

"You speak of control, yet you cause chaos." Thor's booming voice reached her ears as the arguing continued.

"It's his M.O., isn't it?" Bruce spoke. "I mean, what are we, a team? No no no," Bruce looked around at everyone, smiling humorlessly as his eyes landed on Kayla. "We're a chemical mixture that _makes_ chaos. We're, we're a time bomb."

"Bruce," Kayla said, seeing his hand move, seeing where he was standing.

"You," Fury stepped towards the doctor. "Need to step away."

"Why shouldn't the guy let off a little steam," Stark said, clamping on a hand on the super soldier's shoulder.

Rogers pushed his hand off, turning a glare towards the engineer. "You know damn well why. Back off."

Kayla blinked. Captain America, swearing? _Wow._

Stark sent his own glare towards the captain. "Oh, I'm starting to want you to make me."

"Yeah," Rogers stepped forward again. "A big man in a suit of armor. Take that off, what are you?"

Stark didn't miss a beat. "Genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist."

Well, he wasn't wrong there.

"I know guys with none of that worth _ten_ of you. And I've seen the footage. The only thing you really fight for is yourself. You're not the guy to make the sacrifice play. To lay down on the wire and let the other guy crawl over you."

"I think I would just cut the wire."

Cap smiled, turning quickly to the other member of the team before staring at Stark. "Always a way out. You know, you may not be a threat, but you better stop pretending to be a hero."

"A hero? Like you?" Stark leaned forward, accusation and anger clear on his face. "You're a laboratory experiment, Rogers. Everything special about you came out of a _bottle._"

Anger rolled off the two. "Put on the suit. Let's go a few rounds."

Thor's laughter turned heads. He looked across at the two in argument. "You people are so petty. And _tiny._"

"Yeah, _this_ is a team." Bruce called out.

"Agent Romanoff," Fury turned his attention back to Bruce. "Would you please escort Dr. Banner back to his room?"

Before the director finished speaking, Banner butted in. "Where? You rented out my room."

"The cell was just in case-"

"In case you had to kill me, but you can't, I know, I've tried." Kayla whipped around, staring at Bruce with wide eyes, seeing that he was completely serious. The doctor glanced at everyone. "I got low. I didn't see an end, so, I put a bullet in my mouth and the other guy _spit_ it out. So, I moved on. I focused on helping other people. I was good. Until you dragged me back into this freak show, and put everyone here at risk. You want to know my secret, Agent Romanoff? You wanna know how I stay calm?"

Everyone noticed at the same time, and every one tensed up.

"Dr. Banner," Cap said, perfectly calm now. "Put down the scepter."

Bruce stared down at the spear in his hand, confused. Before he could make a move, the screen across the room went off. Everyone turned, startled.

"Got it." Fury stepped towards the computer.

"Sorry kids. You don't get to see my party trick after all," Bruce said as he set the scepter down on the table, and began his walk, passing Kayla on her left. He didn't make contact with any of them, just headed towards the computer.

"You located the Tesseract?" Thor asked at the same time Kayla asked, "You got it?"

"I can get there faster," She heard Stark call out, only faintly hearing him. The girl was focused on the screen, thinking that if they found the Tesseract, they had to have found Clint too.

"The Tesseract belongs on Asgard," Thor's voice was the loudest of all them behind her. "No human is a match for it."

Kayla ignored everyone else as she saw how Bruce's back tensed up, and heard the unmistakable words, "Oh my god."

No sooner had the words left the doctors mouth did an explosion blast through the room directly in the middle of the lab, the force causing everyone to be thrown backwards. Kayla was blown to her right, directly into Thor, and the two tumbled to the floor a few feet away. She only hit her head against the metal on his chest, but it was enough to make her dizzy for a few seconds. Her shield stretched out form her core, engulfing Thor and her in a pink glow, although it was a little late. It seemed to protect her, whenever she was in trouble, even if she had only slightly hit her head. Thor's body had cushioned her fall, and even now, he was pulling her up and away from the hole in the floor.

The girl coughed, the smoke filling her lungs as her shield faded away. Thor looked down at her in wonder before growing serious, hands hovering over her where she sat on the floor. The comm came to life in her ear. There was still a slight ringing in her ears from the explosion, but she heard bits and pieces of what was being said. An engine was down, and Stark was headed over to repair it. That was good at least.

"Kayla!" Thor yelled. He must have said her names a few times and she hadn't heard him. She coughed again, looking up at the god. Now having her attention, he asked, "Are you hurt?"

After a second of processing what he had said, she shook her head. "No," She realized that it had come out a whisper compared to the chaos around them, and she raised her voice. "No, I'm fine. Just a little dizzy. We should help Stark with the engine. It's down."

The blonde nodded, hands wrapping around her waist and an arm. She stood with the help of Thor, looking around. No one was with them, and she hoped that they were all right. Raking through her memory, she was sure that no one was in the direct vicinity of the blast, so they should all be fine. When it looked like she could walk by herself, they headed to the hall where they could leave the damage. The halls were flashing red, and a chorus of alarms were going off. The hall was mostly clear, except a few vents and pieces of wall that scattered the floor. There was steam coming out of a section of the wall, but other than that, there wasn't much damage. The majority of it must have been to the engines.

It wasn't much longer that the two walked, then picked up their pace and began to jog, heading towards the engine rooms with some directions from one of the agents in the hall. She was pretty sure they only had to turn a few more times to get to the main corridor towards the engines. Kayla was about to repeat this to Thor when an unmistakable sound rang through the Helicarrier. The girl closed her eyes, but she couldn't remember which way Bruce had fallen. She knew that there was no mistaking that sound.

That was the roar of the Hulk.

_Oh no_.

* * *

**_End Note: _No flashbacks in this chapter, so I made up for it with two in the next. Know that the flashbacks are important! They're like shaping this whole story! No more updates today. I hope you are all enjoying so far. Until next week!**

_-OnyxRing_


	8. Separation, Blood Shed, and a Reunion

**_Author's Note:_ Two flashbacks today. The first is to show her shield, kind of. The second was just a memory of a dear friend...**

**BornWithPants33: First of all, your name is hilarious. I wanted to thank you for your review! That just made the beginning of my day brilliant, and I wanted to thank you for that! Thank you for your kind words! :)**

**Also, I decided to dedicate a whole chapter - three or four from now - as a flashback to show what happened in Norway. It's probably not what you're expecting, but I hope you all enjoy it anyways. I think it's a good way to start off Kayla's adventure.**

* * *

**Chapter Eight – Separation, Blood Shed, and a Reunion**

"No," Kayla grabbed onto Thor's shoulders, her mind flashing through images of Harlem. She knew that Bruce was good at keeping the Hulk down, but once he was out... She was thinking fast, seeing the opportunity in front of her. "You're a god, right?"

"What was that?"

"Thor!" she shook him, although not much. He was big, tall and strong. She herself was shaking, feeling nauseas as fear raked through her body. She released her grip on the blonde as she took in a deep breath and he stared down at her like she had grown another head, but there was no time to waste. That had been the Hulk's roar. "Thor, that was Bruce. That was the Hulk."

He looked down at the girl, the strange look he had been giving her turning into confusion. "That sound?" A unit blew in the ceiling a foot away from them, both covering their faces with an arm as the sparks rained down.

She was panicking now, thinking about what was happening and how to stop it. "Thor. Bruce, when he gets mad or stressed, he's not himself. He grows! He turns into a monster, all big and green! He's hell bent on smashing things! You're a god, with super strength and your hammer, you can take him on, right?"

Thor looked down at her, hearing the panic in her voice and the fear on her face. "I can try."

"You _have _to! From what I've seen, what he can do is _not_ pretty. Thor, we can't let him hurt anyone. You have to stop him, or try to get him off the ship or something!."

With a nod, Thor took off in the direction that the roar had come from. She hoped he would get there in time.

Kayla continued down the hall in a jog, and as she turned a corner, the com in her ear came alive again. "_Perimeter breach. Hostiles are in S.H.I.E.L.D. gear_." She swore loudly, stopping only long enough to check her surroundings for anyone in gear. When the coast was clear, she continued at a slower pace, looking out for any "hostiles". If the explosion had been an attack, then there was a possibility that they would attack again, and not just the engines. It was a good thing Kayla knew what the gear looked like, and it was good that the agents weren't wearing it, so she could tell the difference.

Over the comm, she heard that they were trying to get the Hulk off the Hellicarrier, and that Thor had been keeping him busy. She breathed a sigh of relief as she turned another corner. At the end of the corridor, two men in black walked out of sight. That was S.H.I.E.L.D. gear. _Now we just have to deal with these guys. _Kayla called on two shards and they slid into her hands, the pink glow lighting up the dark hall where the lights went out.

The hostiles were heading in the direction of the engines that Rogers and Stark were working at, so she quietly made her way down the hall and peeked around the corner. Both of the men in black had guns, ready to fire as they stopped at a doorway, the sunlight streaming into the corridor. Two more men met them at the doorway, slipping in. That was when the gunshots started, and Kayla reacted. She stepped out and the next thing she knew, a shard was flying down the hall and sinking into the shoulder of one of the mercenaries. The man let out a grunt of pain, and Kayla sent another shard down as she jogged forward. The second shard sunk into his chest as he turned and let out a few shots before he fell to the ground. The girl pressed herself up to the wall as the next man turned and began to shoot at her. She called on two longer shards as her shield wrapped around her and stepping forward again. The man stood with his gun raised, bullets hitting her shield that protected her as she continued forward.

When she was close enough, even as he had taken a few steps back, she stared at him through the pink of her shield and plunged the shard into his chest. Her fingers let go of the shard as gravity pulled the limp body to the floor. When there were no more threats in sight, Kayla looked down at the two bodies on the floor, shards pointing out of their chests. She took in the sight and finally realized what she had just done.

Kayla Hudson had just killed two people.

She stared down at the bodies, feeling her guard slip. _What have I done?_ Her shield faded and she started falling, but caught herself against the wall. The cool metal pressed against her forehead as she fought back the urge to puke with tears running down her cheeks. Old memories surfaced, blood and knives filling her vision. Panic filled her, closing around her. Sounds of footsteps filled her ears, and she realized that was the present, and she immediately called on her shield to wrap around her in a dome. The girl stood up straight, two more shards in hand as bullets hit her shield. She flinched, but her shield held.

Hesitating, she stared at two more men pointing guns at her down the corridor a bit. They were shooting at her. _Self-defense_, she told herself as she flung her shards out towards them and stepped forward as she replaced the shards. The closest man ducked to the side, causing a shard to graze his shoulder. Both shards flew towards the second man, who fell to the ground to avoid being hit, and the pink objects clattered to the floor. Neither went down, so Kayla stepped forward, swinging a shard, making to stab the closest man. Her dome shrank as got closer, the man taking the opportunity to fire at her. She moved to the side, sinking the shard into his side and kicking the gun out of his hands. Her second shard sank into his shoulder and she crouched, pulled the man in front of her as the second began shooting at her.

Bullets hit the first man, and blood poured out of him as his body went limp. Kayla sat on the floor, then raised her feet and kicked the body with all of her strength towards the second, causing him to topple into the wall with the weight. She heard a grunt as she stood and pulled the shard out of the body, but before she could move, a gun was flying through the air and hit her, hard. Her head rang as she fell to the floor, a hand rising to her temple as she blinked hard. A shadow passed over her, and she immediately kicked out, hitting the gun as another shot rang out and it clattered to the floor a few feet away. The mercenary still stood over her, and she watched as he pulled a knife out. Anger washed over her as she reached her own hand out, grabbing onto the discarded weapon from a body and pointing the gun at her attacker and pulling the trigger. She let out a scream and closed her eyes as the man lunged at her, but the only pain that came was the weight of man as he fell on top of her.

Kayla let out another sigh as she realized that he was dead, and she quickly pushed the body off of her, and felt something hit her legs. The com had fallen out of her ear, and it was completely broken. She tossed it down the hall. She stood and looked around, the gun in her hand clattering to the floor. _What have I done?_ She though in horror as she looked at four bodies on the floor, her shards still embedded in some. Tears slid down her cheeks as she wrapped her arms around herself and stared at the blood and bodies around her.

The Helicarrier started tipping, and Kayla was thrown into the wall. She felt a sob escape her lips, and she tried to wipe away the tears on her cheeks. After a few moments of trying to get herself together, she finally pulled herself up and walked over to the two longer shards a few feet away, picked them up, and made her way to the doorway with the light streaming into the hall.

_Focus,_ she told herself as she stepped into the room and took a deep breath, although it wasn't exactly a room. The wall had been blown off, the engine broken as wires and metal hung off the ship. Gunfire sounded around her and she moved to a crouch as she looked around. She didn't get a chance to actually see anything before the ship was tipping again, sending Kayla forward. She would have fallen right off into the sky if it hadn't been for the railing in front of her. A scream erupted from her lips as she freed her hands to grab onto the railing, holding on for dear life, her shards falling into the sky.

Kayla tried pulling herself upwards, but the ship was tipped, so her legs were dangling in the air a little. Fear closed around her as she hung in the air. She saw movement out of the corner of her eye and turned to see Rogers hanging off the ship too, a cord the only thing keeping him aboard.

"Kayla!" She saw him look past her, back towards the entrance. She followed his gaze, seeing another mercenary, gun in hand. He didn't seem to see her, only Rogers, so she stayed still where she hung. Rogers was pulling himself back onto the ship, and she wished she had that kind of strength to pull herself up.

"I need a minute here!" Rogers said as he stood. She realized that he hadn't been talking to her, but he must have been talking to someone on the com. The Hellicarrier was leveled out now, and the gunman was shooting at Rogers, who was dodging and looking at a red lever a few feet away. Kayla's arms were getting weak as she hung there, the mercenary only a few feet from her. The captain had started to fire back as he made his way down towards the lever, picking up the gun on the way.

_Just a little longer,_ she told herself as she felt her hands slipping. She looked down at the sky below her in fear as one hand slipped off the bar. It was a long drop. A flash above her caused her to look up just in time to see Iron Man zip by, taking out the mercenary. She sighed. _Good, they must've fixed the engine._

"Kayla, hold on!" She barely heard the captain as she tried to hold on. Right as her hand started to slip, a red glove wrapped around her wrist. She let out a scream as her hand fell from the bar and her body pulled her down, but she continued to hang. Kayla looked up at the blue eyes of Captain America. He smiled down at her with reassurance before tugging her up.

She felt her body rise, until her feet touched the metal of the platform. Rogers wrapped an arm around her waist as he helped her over the railing. She clung to him as she stood up straight, breathing heavily in relief as she looked around. Stark lay on the floor as he rolled off of the mercenary. She sighed again as she looked back at the engine. It was fixed and they were still in the sky. On instinct, Kayla wrapped her arms around Rogers' middle and hugged him for a second before stepping back. "Thank you," she said, breathlessly.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

She nodded, and he followed suit, looking exhausted. She thought that they were fine. Before her comm had died, she heard that the Hulk was off the ship, although Bruce was gone now, and the engine was back up. She thought that everything would be okay now.

She was wrong.

Kayla watched Stark slowly sit up, his helmet off of his head and thrown to the side. He looked startled as he glanced up at Kayla on the higher platform. With a glance at Rogers, she saw that he, too, looked upset, but not as much as Tony was.

"What?" Kayla asked, staring down at Stark. His mouth hung open as he stood up and turned away. She didn't miss the disbelief, pain and sadness that had crossed his features before he turned away. "Coulson."

He didn't have to finish. Just the way he had said it and the tension of his body told her everything. Kayla's hand flew to her chest, feeling her heart race. She covered her mouth with her other hand, holding back the sob that threatened to escape her lips. But a tear slipped down her cheek as her body tightened, and she barely felt her shield wrap around her for a moment before shrinking back. _No, not Coulson. _

Stark turned his head to the side, anger slipping into his voice. "He's dead."

oOo

"_I'm trying here," Kayla's voice shook as she squeezed her eyes shut._

"_Try _harder,_" The voice across from her practically growled. He was about as frustrated as she was, although she didn't know why. It was her ability, not his, and he shouldn't be getting this mad over it. Maybe it was because he just didn't want to be here, or maybe it was because he didn't want to be here with _her._ Kayla started to feel something brush her shoulders as she focused, but the sound of his voice broke her concentration. "Do you _want_ to be here?"_

_Kayla's eyes snapped open. She studied the brunette across from her. "Are you _kidding_ me? I've been here for three months trying to figure this out, but-"_

_He interrupted again. "You already have this figured out. You know how to bring your shield forward, but you insist on finding a different way. Well, a different way isn't working."_

"_Don't you dare," Kayla said through clenched teeth. She knew exactly what he was going to do next. _

"_What, you don't like picturing Norway?" He glared at her from where he sat, fists clenched. She closed her own eyes shut as she tried to block him out. "You didn't like imagining the blood on your hands, imagining the warmth leaving her body, making her cold, as you held her? You didn't like that you were a little too late as the knife slid across-"_

"_Enough!" Kayla yelled, and with the outburst of rage, her shield wrapped around her. The pink glow surrounded her as she glared through the haze that was protecting her at the brunette, humming a melody that only she heard. _

"_That's better."_

oOo

Thinking of the blood shed caused by her own hands made her shield wrap around her. Thinking of a dead friend made her shield wrap around her. Protecting her. Shielding her.

oOo

Fury had the decency to let the three change before calling for a meeting at the bridge. She didn't bother, though; she was too shaken up about Coulson to really do anything. Kayla noticed that the locker room hadn't been damaged, and she checked to make sure she was alone before she sat down on the bench nearest the sinks. The girl stared at her hands hanging in between her legs, the small smear of blood on her knuckles. She felt pressure against her eyes, and to avoid tears, she let out a scream of frustration.

She couldn't believe that Coulson was dead, that they couldn't do anything about it because she had been at the _engines_ _killing_ _people_ herself. He had been one of her only friends, out of all the people she had met and talked to, he had been the one that was there for her, that kept her out of trouble. To be a friend when she needed one most.

Kayla shook her head, finally standing to go blow her nose before she pulled her hair up into a ponytail. She left the locker room, heading wherever her body took her. After roaming the halls, she found a kitchen-looking room. She mindlessly searched the cupboards, trying to clear her head by distracting herself. Nothing caught her eye, except when she hunched down and felt around the back of a bottom shelf. Her hand wrapped around the top of the bottle, and she pulled it out in disbelief. The Helicarrier carried alcohol, and Kayla had somehow found it amongst the huge ship.

The girl stared down at the bottle, the brown liquid swirling in the glass. Sorrow and pain coursed through her muscles and mind. Maybe the alcohol could numb some of that, at least enough so she could forget for a little bit. Kayla swiped the bottle up into her hands and yanked off the top. She didn't bother with a glass, just raised the bottle to her lips and poured the alcohol into her mouth.

She coughed around the liquid as it burned down her throat. It hurt, but she needed it. She wanted to dull the pain in her chest. Kayla grimaced as she pulled the bottle away and pressed the back of her hand to her mouth. Her eyes squeezed shut, and when the liquid was all down, she raised the bottle again. She got in a few more gulps before she stopped to swallow. The alcohol burned her throat, but fortunately, she could already feel the effects. Kayla gulped down some more of the burning liquid before she pushed the cap back onto the bottle and pushed it away from herself. She stared at the brown liquid in front of her.

Thoughts were pushing at her. She had lost a friend, and more were missing, and she couldn't do anything about it. She couldn't save them. She hadn't _been _there when she should have.

She felt regret. Guilt. Despair. _Pain._

oOo

_Kayla swung her legs on the bar stool, a good amount of alcohol already in her system. It had been a few hours since her training session at S.H.I.E.L.D., and the girl just wanted a break from everything .Ever since Norway, she had wanted her life to go back to normal, but it had gone in the opposite direction. Everything was changing._

_She brought the glass to her lips and sipped some of the brown liquid. It burned all the way down her throat, but she didn't care. It was a good distraction. The girl closed her eyes and hummed as she took another sip. _

_Her humming was interrupted by a man ordering a drink and taking a seat at the bar stool next to her. It bothered her that he chose the seat _directly next to her own._ Couldn't he choose a seat away from a girl who was just trying to find some peace in this messed up world? _Men,_ she thought with a huff._

_She kept her eyes closed until the ordered drink clanked onto the bar next to her and the man finally spoke. "How's the escape going?"_

_Kayla cracked open an eyelid and peered at Agent Coulson as he raised the glass in his hand up to his lips. She rolled her eyes before tilting her head to the side and focused on the ice at the bottom of her own glass. She blinked away the haze that had started to fog up her brain. Leaning her chin against her hand, she mumbled, her words slurred from the alcohol, "You know… this isn't the life I w-wanted."_

"_Actually, I thought you _wanted_ to help people." The man replied, straightening his tie and turning on his stool. Kayla continued to kick her legs under the counter as she thought. He was right, of course. It was what she wanted after the agency told her that they could help train her._

_What she didn't want was to be treated like a kid. She voiced her thoughts, her words somewhat slurred with pauses. "I didn't think… I would be treated like this. Why can'ta go on missions like everyone else?"_

"_You're not an agent, and you know it."_

_She sent a glare in his direction. She wasn't thinking, not with the alcohol in her system. He was right, again. _Why did I say that?_ She asked herself, then found herself shaking her head. Her mouth fell open as she took another sip from her glass. When she spoke again, she felt like her tongue was numb. "Why can'ta just be normal? Like you?"_

_There was a moment of silence, and Kayla rose her eyebrows before swinging her head to look at the agent next to her. She waited for the man to answer. Coulson raised his glass again, but paused before touching the glass to his lips. "Because then you wouldn't be Kayla Hudson."_

_Kayla rolled her eyes again as a giggle escaped her lips. "Well _yeaaah._ That's just _craaazy._" She paused as her mind wandered and her smile faded from her lips. She laid her chin on her hand again as she looked at the wall across from her. "But what if I don't want to be Kayla Hudson? Why can't I be…?" She trailed off, not thinking straight. She didn't know how to finish that sentence. So she blurted out, "Someone else." She paused, a hiccup escaping her throat. "You know, _awesome_."_

_A weight pressed down on her forearm, and Kayla dropped her head. Coulson had laid a hand on her arm, and he squeezed comfortingly. She flicked her hazel eyes up to meet his, and the agent stood. "Because then you wouldn't be special."_

oOo

Kayla left the bottle on the counter top and turned away. The small amount of alcohol would do. With a push off the counter top, she made her way out the door, heading to the bridge. The girl knew she needed to focus, to worry about the task at hand and not sit and cry with a bottle of whatever. She felt so much older than she was with everything that had happened in the last day. The alcohol barely helped with anything.

After the trek through the corridors, Kayla walked onto the bridge, seeing that Cap and Stark sat with a seat in between them, and Fury was standing on the other side of the table. She took a seat two away from Cap, her gaze trained on the table in front of her as she drummed her fingers on the surface. She saw the cards on the table out of the corner of her eye, and instead stared at the smear of blood on her hand, blood that belonged to someone she had killed.

The Director told them what had happened, that Loki had escaped, that Bruce and Thor were missing. Kayla couldn't sit still, and found her leg tapping away under the table. Kayla felt the alcohol in her system, if only the slightest bit. It was enough to dull some of the pain and angry. She was angry because Coulson was dead, because Loki had gotten away, because she had _killed_ people and because two people that she had started to care about were now missing, along with Clint.

"I can't believe he's dead," she whispered, shaking her head. _Why wasn't somebody there? Somebody to watch over that _monster_?_

"Where's Natasha?" Cap's voice snapped through her thoughts.

There was a pause. _Too long of a pause_. Kayla's eyes snapped up to the Director's, who was staring right back at her. _No_, she thought, _she can't be too._ Fury shook his head as he saw the fear in her eyes, telling her that wasn't it. A breath fell out of his lips as his eyes flickered around the room before landing on her again. "She's with Agent Barton."

Her heart skipped a beat, and she froze. She whispered, "He's here?"

Fury nodded. "The spell that he was under; it's gone. He's down in Corridor B."

"Why didn't you start with that?" Kayla pushed herself out of her chair and took off in a jog, she had to see it with her own eyes, had to see _him_. She didn't know where she was going, but she had to find it eventually, right?

Flashes of memories flickered in her mind. She thought about his smile, the way he raised an eyebrow, his bad jokes. She thought about when he gave her his bracelet, and how they had talked for _hours_ up on that rooftop. About the time that she had first nicked him with a shard, how she had been over him. She thought about how they went to the bar with a few other agents, including Coulson. About how he had visited her when she was sick. She thought about the last time that they had trained. How they had almost kissed. How he had said her name.

Kayla finally made it to the right corridor, and she slowed her pace as she looked through every window in anticipation. Her heart was racing, thinking that he had to be okay now that he was back, that _she_ would be okay. She passed an empty room, and another.

There he was, sitting on a bed, legs hanging off the side with his hands in his lap. Sweat was on his forehead and neck. He seemed fine, sitting there – next to Romanoff. The two were obviously having a moment of some kind. They were talking. Seeing her not even inches away from him made her stomach flip. Jealousy flared through her as she clenched her fists at her sides, but right now, she couldn't care about that. He was alive and well, that was all that mattered. It shouldn't bother her that he was fine in there talking to the redhead. Except, it _did_ bother her.

She stared at the two agents; the partners. Of course the two would have some kind of relationship.. She hung her head and started to slide away when they finally saw her standing outside behind the glass. Kayla's breath caught in her throat as his eyes met hers. The archer stood, putting the cup in his hand down on the table without taking his eyes off of hers. The look in his eyes made her move, taking a step towards the door and hitting the button to make it slid open. Before she even knew what she was doing, she was rushing forward, wrapping her arms around his middle. His own arms wrapped around her shoulders immediately and he mumbled into her hair. "Kay."

"You're okay," Kayla said as she rested her head in the crook of his neck. She didn't know if she was relieved or still trying to convince herself, even as he was right in front of her. "You're okay."

"I am." He squeezed her again before stepping back, laying a hand on the side of her face, thumb hovering over the cut on her forehead. She faintly heard the door _swish_, and barely glanced around to see that Romanoff had left.

"What he did to you, Clint, what Loki made you _do_," Kayla's voice broke at the end of the sentence as she looked away, down at his shoulder. "I didn't know if I would ever see you again. If you were ever going to be _you_ again. I never-"

"Hey," Clint's voice softened as he took her face in both of his hands and forced her to look at him. She met his blue eyes, holding back a sob as she breathed deeply. "Hey, I'm okay, I'm _here._"

She nodded, and his hands fell to her shoulders as she continued to breathe deeply. Now that she knew he was safe, she felt better. That is until he asked, "What happened to you?"

His eyes were trained on her forehead, looking at the little cut there. She waved a hand. "Just got tossed around a bit, no big deal." When his eyes traveled south, down to her shirt, she followed his gaze. There was a small cut up under her collar bone, and there was a splatter of blood on her gray shirt that she just realized was there. The cut must have been from when that man had fallen on her, knife in hand. She hadn't even noticed. And the blood…

She didn't know what to say. Kayla didn't care if he didn't have feelings for her like she did for him, but she at least needed a friend. What if she told him, and he hated her because of what she did? "Clint, I… I killed four people."

The first tear slid down her face as she looked back up at the archer. Clint froze, staring down at her. She closed her eyes. _He probably _does_ hate me now,_ she thought. _Nice, sweet, innocent Kayla Hudson with blood on her hands._ She opened her eyes to look back up at him, seeing the regret there.

"Clint, _I killed four people_." Kayla's voice shook. She almost wished he hated her. "Four human beings, _dead_ because of me. I didn't even think about what I was doing before they were dead on the floor. Clint, I killed somebody."

Clint pulled her into another hug as more tears slid down her cheeks, stroking her hair as his other hand tightened on her back. "Shh," Clint's voice soother her as he stroked her hair as she continued to cry. "Shh, you'll get through this. You're going to be fine."

He held her for a few minutes, soothing her with words of comfort as she got her sobs under control. When she stopped crying, she pulled back, staring at the wet spot on his shirt, as she wiped her tears on her sleeve. "And Coulson."

"None of it was your fault," Clint made her look at him, and she saw the sadness in his eyes at the mention of his handler.

Kayla watched as the emotions fluttered across his face. She stood up straighter as she pointed at him. "None of it is _your_ fault either." Clint ducked his head, and she knew that was what was bothering him. She was angry then, that he would blame himself for something he didn't do. It was her turn to comfort him. "Clinton Barton, you are _not_ to blame. You were brainwashed."

"They were my hands, my body that-"

Kayla cut him off by punching him lightly on the shoulder. "Don't talk like that, okay? It's no one's fault but Loki's. And we'll make him pay. Got it?"

The archer stared down at her, blue eyes swirling. Knowing that he was safe, Kayla felt the weight lifting off her shoulders. He nodded at her, and she finally allowed herself to smile for the first time in what felt like weeks.

* * *

_**End Note:**_** I hope you all are enjoying Blame it on Norway! **

-_OnyxRing_


	9. Let the Games Begin

**Chapter Nine – Let the Games Begin**

"_You're getting a new trainer."_

"_Why?" Kayla asked, crossing her arms over her chest as she raised an eyebrow at Coulson._

"_Because, Agent Derks doesn't specialize in aim quite as well as another agent on base."_

"_You mean Agent Dicks?" Kayla watched as Coulson rolled his eyes. She was actually quite glad. Dicks was a horrible teacher. He was a dick. She shrugged as she looked up at the ceiling with a frown. "Didn't like him anyway."_

_Coulson breathed out a laugh as he shook his head. They stood in the training room, waiting. It had been only a minute or two, but she was already bored. "What?" She asked, raising her eyebrow again._

"_You just, act like a child sometimes," Coulson said with a smile on his lips._

"_Hey, I'm not _that_ old. I'm twenty-six." Kayla shrugged as she rocked her hips back and forth where she stood. "I'm barely a grown up."_

"_At least you admit it," she heard him say with a small grin. Before she could respond, the door to the training room slid open, and a man walked in. "Finally."_

"_Sorry, got held up." The man said, walking towards them, a gym bag in hand. He wore black; a black t-shirt and pants. He filled out his t-shirt, enough to see that he worked out regularly. Dark blonde hair pushed up and blue eyes that swept over her, analyzing. _

"_Kayla Hudson, meet your new trainer," Coulson gestured to the man as he stepped closer, stopping with a hand held out in greeting. "Agent Barton."_

_Her mouth fell open as she looked at him. She had heard of the agent before, from stories told around S.H.I.E.L.D., and even a few mentions of him from Coulson himself. He wasn't what she had been expecting at all. He was attractive, and taller than she imagined, and so… nice looking. "Uh…"_

_The blonde laughed as a smile spread across his lips. His hand dropped back to his side as his blue eyes looked over at Coulson for a second before he took a step back. He held his arms out, a grin spreading over his features as he gestured to himself. "I'll give you a minute."_

_Kayla finally snapped out of her thoughts at his words, feeling her cheeks flush. Her eyes squinted at Coulson at the embarrassment that she blamed on him. _A little warning would have been nice_, she thought as she looked at the blonde again._

_Her cheeks were still warm as he looked at her, a gleam in his eyes. He laughed as he said, "This'll be fun."_

oOo

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"For crying on you," Kayla stared at the small wet spot on his shoulder. The two had sat and talked for a few minutes, facing each other. She watched him smile and shake his head. "It's just, you, you know?"

His blue eyes looked up at her as the two lapsed into silence. Kayla felt much better than she did a few minutes ago. Seeing him, back and safe, she felt her heart jump with just being in the same room as him, even if she knew there was still something wrong. "I- I met the team. None of them are like you. None of them really know me yet. But _you_ do."

She clamped her mouth shut, hearing how sappy that sounded. She still wasn't sure if he cared about her in _that way_, or if he even thought of her differently since she had said she had killed people. Plus, with Romanoff in the picture, everything was just that much more complicated.

"Anyways," Kayla cleared her throat. It just got a little awkward. "I'll let you… do whatever."

She stood and turned before closing her eyes and mentally face-palming herself. _Stupid, stupid, stupid,_ she thought.

"Kay," Clint's voice stopped her, but she didn't turn around. "Just give me a minute?"

He wanted her to wait for him? Conflicting emotions ran through her body, but she nodded, still turned as she heard a door shut behind her. With a glance, she saw that Clint was gone, and the door to the small room that she assumed was the bathroom was shut. Kayla moved towards the door, a sigh escaping her lips as she stepped out into the hall. The only person out in the hall was Agent Romanoff, who was leaning against the wall right out of view of the glass windows. "Romanoff, how-"

"I think after everything that's happened," the redhead spoke as she walked forward with a glance into the room, "You can call me Natasha."

Kayla raised an eyebrow, staring at the woman. What, were they being nice to each other now? Kayla had snapped at the redhead, had basically ignored multiple orders, and had even managed to annoy the woman and make her suspicious of the author in the short amount of time that they had known each other, and now they were playing nice?

"Natasha." Kayla tried, crossing her arms over her chest. "How is he?"

The agent took another step forward, looking into the room, confused. "What are you talking about? You just saw him."

Kayla looked into green eyes. "No, I didn't. Not really." She looked through the glass at the closed door in the room, glad that there were two walls between them and Clint. "He looked fine, normal even. And I know he only seemed that way because I was there. But he _had_ to open up to you. He can't be fine after something like that."

The agent nodded, letting the silence surround them. She accepted that Kayla was right, and that she should know the truth anyways. "He just needs some time."

That was the only answer that Kayla was going to get. She nodded, not really understanding, and feeling her heart break a little. "Alright, I guess. He wanted me to stay, but you're here, so." She shrugged and pointed down the hall in that general direction, looking away from the redhead. "I think I'll get some air."

"Hudson," Natasha said before she even took one step in any direction. "Explain."

"What, not Kayla? I think after everything that's happened…" Kayla mirrored what the other woman said earlier, avoiding the question. She got a stern look in response, a look that said, spill-or-else. "I'm getting some air."

"No," Natasha crossed her arms over her chest, looking very determined and a little angry. "There was another meaning behind what you said. That I was here. Explain."

Kayla knew she wasn't going to get out of it, so she complied. "You're," she paused, swallowing hard with discomfort. She hugged her arms around her waist. "You're relationship."

Confusion crossed Natasha's features, and then realization hit. "You think Clint and I…" Kayla looked away as she trailed off, her stomach flipping. Hearing it said out loud made it ten times worse than when she thought about it on her own. "We've been partners for years."

That just made Kayla's stomach turn even more.

"Look," Natasha paused, searching for the right words as she looked through the glass. Suddenly, she asked, "Why do you think Barton gave you that bracelet?"

The question startled Kayla, making her physically snap her head back. She pulled her arm up and pulled it to her chest, hand laying over her heart. The metal of the bracelet caught the light as her arm swung up. She thought about what the redhead had asked, but she was speechless, finding no words.

"You two are so clueless," Natasha muttered, just about rolling her eyes, and Kayla was startled. She had never seen the look in the spy's eyes, almost a look of affection. "He's had that bracelet for three years, not taking it off once. _At all_. Then he ends up giving it to you? He wouldn't even tell _me_ how he got it, and he used to get really defensive about it. Now, you wear it." She rose her perfectly curved eyebrows, as if to say, _Do you understand now_?

Kayla touched the bracelet, her thoughts racing. She looked through the glass, into the room. She knew that he always wore it, every day, until he had given it to her. She didn't even truly know why or where it came from; just that it meant something to him.

"That convinced _me_, but you two," Natasha paused, shaking her head as she let her hands fall to her sides. "Trust me, he wants you to stay."

"What are you saying?" Kayla finally found her voice, questioning the other woman.

"There's nothing going on between me and Barton," she reassured, hitting the button to slide the door open. "But, there's something between _you_ and Barton."

With that, Natasha stepped into the room, leaving Kayla out in the hall, contemplating the other woman's words. If that were true, why did she still feel like he didn't think of her in that way? She had obviously been, well, _obvious_. She had tried to kiss him even, without even apologizing for it or explaining herself. She blushed like crazy whenever something happened with the two, or even when she stared at him for too long. Clint had to know that, for her, it was more than just a crush. Was that what the redhead had meant?

But Clint, he hadn't shown any sign that he returned the feelings, except for maybe the way he had said her name after they had almost kissed. He had sounded drained, his voice scratchy like he hadn't used it in years. Other than that, he was her trainer, and hadn't shown anything more.

Kayla hesitantly followed Natasha into the room and closed the door behind her. She felt uncomfortable with the whole conversation that she had with Natasha. But, the words had sunk in, that the partners were just that; partners. Nothing more. And that maybe, Clint returned the feelings. Maybe.

Thinking about Clint had her worried again, and before she knew it, she was standing at the bathroom door where he had snuck away and her hand was knocking against the door. "Clint?

She waited for him to answer. When he didn't, she began to panic, looking over at Natasha before raising her hand again and knocked. The door opened, and Clint stood there, staring down at Kayla. It seemed like he was covered in sweat, but she soon realized that it was water splashed onto his face. "I've been gone two minutes. You miss me that bad?"

Kayla scowled at him at his playful tone, even as a blush creeped across her cheeks. She turned and crossed her arms as he grinned and returned deeper into the small bathroom, the door closing behind him. Sometimes, his cockiness was just… Ugh.

The door to the room slid open then, and Rogers stood in the threshold, all suited up. They all turned to look at him. "Time to go," he told them, looking to each of them.

"Go where?" Romanoff asked.

Kayla stepped forward to stand next to the spy. The blush and the tightness of her shoulders disappeared at the seriousness of the soldiers' face.

"I'll tell you on the way. Can you fly one of those jets?"

The bathroom door opened again, and Clint entered the room, towel in hand. "I can."

Cap blinked at the man, seeing him for the first time. His eyes flickered over to Kayla questioningly. Then his blue irises flickered over to Natasha, who nodded. Kayla watched the silent signals being passed from one person to the other. After a moment, Rogers looked back at Clint with a nod. "You got a suit?"

He nodded, and the captain glanced again at Kayla. "Then suit up."

oOo

They did just that. Kayla walked fast, almost at a jog as she headed towards the locker room. Rogers seemed alert, as if the situation was urgent. After a few more minutes of walking down the hall, she was stopped. "Kayla."

She turned, watching as Natasha turned down a hall to the right. Clint stood there at the T in the hallway. He pointed to the right. "Down the hall, second door on the right. Weapons cargo. Meet us there?"

She nodded, giving him a small smile. Clint took another step, paused as he nodded quickly, almost to himself, and then he was gone. Kayla spun around and continued her own trek down the hallway to obtain her uniform. Once she was in the locker room, she shrugged off her shirt and threw it across the room, then pulled on her tank top armor and zipped it up. She ran her hands down the front of her, and then turned in the mirror. She re-tied her ponytail, tight and out of the way. Before she turned away from the mirror, she checked the small gash on her temple. It didn't look too bad, barely noticeable when her hair had been down. Kayla grabbed her jacket, then made her way out of the locker room and down the hall. When she got to the door that Clint had mentioned, she saw that the door was open, and she stepped in.

Clint stood over a container that was laid on the floor, lid open. He was sliding a quiver onto his back over his uniform, and then he was bending down to pick up some more gear. Kayla glanced over at Natasha, who was latching some sort of equipment onto her wrists. They were glowing blue at certain points, and then she snapped them into place. The spy spun around, ready. Clint turned a few seconds later, grabbing a few more pieces of gear as Natasha led the way out. Before Kayla followed, she smiled at the archer. "Nice get up."

Clint's eyebrows rose, eyes dipping to look her up and down. A smirk tugged at his own lips. "Not too bad yourself, Hudson."

Kayla laughed, hitting him on the chest playfully before following the other woman. The three caught up to Captain America, who led them down to the jets as he told them of the situation. They were taking matters into their own hands, and they were going to stop Loki. Kayla couldn't argue. She was sure they all had different reasons why they were willing to do this. Steve and Natasha because it was their job. Clint because of what he went through. Kayla and Tony because of what happened to Coulson.

Clint brought her out of her thoughts, and she looked up to see Cap and Natasha walking ahead. "Hudson, you got a comm?"

"No. Mine broke when the engines went down." She turned to him, seeing him frown. He held his hand out, a small communicator in his hand. She took it from him. "I don't even know how to use it."

"You just hold the button there when you want to talk," Clint pointed, his shoulder brushing hers as he stepped closer. "Double tap to keep the communication open at all times."

Kayla nodded. "Easy enough."

"Got you one of the simpler ones. Cap too, seeing as you guys aren't that good with tech."

"Hey," Kayla reached a hand out and pushed him, just enough for him to stumble sideways a little. "I'm getting better." She watched the archer grin as she slid the comm into her ear and shook her head. She realized then as she looked ahead that they were almost at one of the jets, and she spoke up, the tech reference reminded her of the engineer himself. "Where's Stark?"

Cap turned in his step so she could hear him over all of the noise in the bay. "He's meeting us out there."

The group passed by agents who gave them glances, but thankfully, none approached. Cap lead them up a ramp of one of the jets, and the four took up the space purposefully. An agent stood up from where he crouched next to some equipment. "Hey, you guys aren't authorized to be in here."

"Son," Cap paused for emphasis, and Kayla smiled. Finally, using his fame to get somewhere. And he really deserved to play that card. "Just don't."

It didn't take much encouraging from then. Pretty soon, the agent had left, and Clint and Natasha had taken their seats up in the front. They warmed up the engine as the ramp closed. Kayla stood next to Cap by the front.

"Are you guys ready?" Clint asked form the front, turning slightly. Kayla could see that he sure was, probably ever since Natasha had knocked him out of being brainwashed. They all nodded, and pretty soon, they were in the air, Stark's form flying in front of the jet. Cap told them of Stark's theory, about making it personal. That Tony had figured out that Loki was going to put the portal right on top of Stark Tower. Kayla watched as Tony picked up speed, flying ahead into the city before them.

Kayla leaned against the edge of the opening across form the captain, not noticing that she had started fidgeting with the bracelet around her wrist; Clint's bracelet. She was worrying about the mission ahead, about what was going to happen. She knew she would have to fight if Loki succeeded. She watched as they got closer and closer to the city.

Rogers startled her with a hand on her arm. Kayla smiled up at him before turning back to look out to the sky. But, his voice caused her to turn back. "Are you sure you're ready for this?"

Kayla stared up into the blue eyes of the super soldier. He was a soldier after all, and he had probably killed in war. The author smiled, although it lacked any emotion. S.H.I.E.L.D. had trained her to protect herself over the last few months, but they didn't teach her how to fight in a _war_. "I've killed before. It's not pretty, but I've done it."

Rogers' eyes flickered across her face before glancing down at the floor. She couldn't tell the emotion that crossed his features. The others had all been in situations like this. Rogers was a soldier after all. The others, Clint and Natasha, probably killed people everyday. And Tony? She didn't even want to know what he had gone through.

The soldier nodded before turning his gaze back to the sky. Kayla's eyes followed, meeting Clint's briefly. The eyes of the archer were calm as he, too, turned back to the city. She thought back to when she spoke to Natasha, about how there was something going on between her and Clint. But she wasn't sure.

_This is war,_ Kayla thought as she looked at Iron Man's small light in front of them. The buildings were getting bigger, and they grew closer. _There's a chance that I won't survive this. That all of us won't survive this._ She wanted to voice her thoughts, to tell Clint and the others that she cared for them, even if she barely knew them. She never told Coulson that he was like a big brother to her; her _family._ She never got a chance. But she had a chance here.

The brunette opened her mouth and was about to speak up when a beam of blue light flashed into the sky. "That's the Tesseract," Steve said, leaning closer to the window to get a better look. Kayla gasped as she watched shapes immediately pour out of the hole in the sky.

"Are you seeing what I'm seeing?" Clint asked no one in particular, but his grip tightened on the lever in front of him. Kayla knew that he was one of the best pilots.

"Everyone ready?" Rogers' voice startled her as she stared at the aliens now invading New York.

"Hell yeah," Clint pushed the jet forward, turning direction slightly. He had probably been ready before any of this even happened, and even more so when Loki manipulated him.

"Comms on," Natasha said, flicking a few buttons on the board. Kayla lifted a shaky hand to her ear as she double tapped the button. She didn't want to forget about it, so leaving it on was the best choice. "Stark, we're on your three headed northeast."

"_What, did you stop for drive-thru_?" Kayla heard his voice through the comm. His humor dripped out with his next words. "_Swing up Park, I'm gonna lay them out for you_."

Clint turned the jet, maneuvering the bird down into the city at Stark's request. Natasha hit a few more buttons on the board, and Kayla felt the floor beneath her shake a little. "Guns up." The spy stated and grabbed ahold of the stick in front of her. The jet was heading straight towards a building at the end of the street, when a flash of light zoomed by. Kayla briefly had the time to register that Iron Man had flown by before the redhead was shooting at the other ships chasing after Stark. They took out a few of the aliens, and Clint let out a cheer as they neared the end of the street. The archer pulled up, and the jet flew up the side of Stark Tower. "Hang on!"

Her and the captain held onto the bar above them as the jet shifted. In only a few seconds they were both almost completely parallel with the bottom of the plane. A flash of memory when she was hanging off the Helicarrier caused her to let out a small scream form her throat. The feeling of being weightless was a little unsettling, and she didn't know if she could handle it again. Once the jet rose over the tower, Clint straightened the bird out. She was thankful to have her two feet on the ground once again. She peeked out the windshield and Kayla caught a glimpse of two figures. Out on the deck, she saw Loki and Thor. The girl let out a sigh of relief as her gaze landed on Thor. She was glad that he was okay and that he hadn't been beaten to a pulp by the Hulk.

"Nat?" Clint asked, staring out the front. "I see him," Natasha replied, as Clint turned the jet to face the deck of the tower. Kayla watched as they turned their attention to the god clad in green, black and gold. A few moments before Natasha fired, Kayla watched Thor move, quickly jumping out of their line of sight. She hoped that the agent had good aim. The girl hadn't been paying attention to the threat pointing a scepter in their direction.

The quinjet shook, and Kayla flew back at the impact, knocking her body against the metal floor. The bird was spinning out of control, and Kayla had rolled to the side of the jet, grabbing onto the ropes attached to the wall. She let out a groan as the jet began to spin and shake. Rogers' still had a grip on the bar near the front, but his body had been elevated. The jet lurched again and Kayla let out a scream as she began to slide down the bottom of the jet after losing her grip. Her arm shot out, trying to catch anything to keep her from falling. Cold metal hit the palm of her hand and her fingers instinctively wrapped around it.

The jet hit the earth, causing Kayla to be lifted into the air for a millisecond, and slid across the ground until it came to a complete stop a few yards away from the initial impact. Her body was a little soar as she let go of the bar she had been holding and laid a hand onto her temple. "Dammit, Clint." She stood, glaring at no one in particular. She knew it hadn't been his fault, but he was the one driving. "Lucky I didn't hit my head again."

Cap laid a hand on her arm, but she nodded at him. "I'm good. Just tossed around a bit." He held his shield in his right arm, and he pulled the cowl over his face as he nodded and headed down the ramp. Only when she saw his form hit the streets of New York did she realize what she was really walking into; they were heading into a war zone.

Kayla was about to follow him onto the streets before she hesitated. She pulled the jacket off of her shoulders and stuffed the piece of clothing into a cubby of the jet. She stared at the sleeve for a few moments before turning and walking down the ramp. Clint was watching her at the end of the ramp, one foot on the ground, one in the jet. "You might want that."

"No, I don't." Kayla walked forward, landing on the ground. "Coulson gave me that jacket. It's the only thing I have that will remind me of him."

The archer nodded beside her but didn't reply. She didn't miss the sadness and guilt that crossed his features. Before Kayla could say another word, screams and destruction filled the city with noise. Clint and Kayla jogged after Cap and Natasha and stopped around them. All four of them glanced up at the portal in the sky as Cap said, "We gotta get back up there."

Kayla looked down at her arms as they started to go their usual yellowish-pink and shards slid into her palms. All other thoughts of Coulson or the jacket left her. Now, she was filled with thoughts about fighting, about the battle around them. An alien ship flew above them, causing them all to turn. Kayla gripped her shards tighter and turned to her teammates. "Well, I guess it's time to fight."

* * *

_**End Note:**_** Thanks for the reviews, and I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! There's only about five or so more chapters, that is until book two. That's where the original plot line will come in. Stay tuned!**

_-OnyxRing_


	10. Damsel

_**Author's Note: **_**Wednesdays are just wonderful! **

**Hopefully I'm doing a good job with this story. So, I only have a few more chapters left until the end of the movie, and I've finally made my decision; I'm just going to continue writing so it's all just _Blame it on Norway,_ instead of breaking it up into different stories. I think it will be better this way!**

**Also, when the movie ends, I'm going to take a small break, a few weeks, to make sure I have a final plot to this story. When I start straight with my own original work, I'll just need time to think it all over, make sure it's what I want.**

**Small thanks to my twin who helped with the flashback. It's quick and to the point. I really just wanted to show how they met, and a little about what happened before.**

**Thank you for sticking with me and following my story! It all means a lot!**

* * *

**Chapter Ten - Damsel**

_Kayla glared at the man beside her. He had been the one to help her out of the car, and he had grabbed her hand pretty hard. She wondered if she would get a bruise from his grip. He wore a professional black suit and had been very secretive - he was definitely some kind of agent: CIA, FBI, Secret Service. When the man glanced at her, she finally spoke. "What the hell am I doing here?"_

"_You're here because you got in the car." A man who walked into the room from the hall said, his voice startling her. Kayla turned around and watched as a man clad in leather walked towards her. An eye patch covered his left eye, and the black leather went well with his dark skin. The man was followed by another, who wore a suit and a pair of sunglasses. Eye Patch nodded to the man who stood next to Kayla, and he quickly exited the room, with a glare at her as he left. She rose an eyebrow as the man with the shades stopped a few feet away and the man with the eye patch walked past her to the tech behind her. _

"_I got in the car because a government agency flashed their badge and told me to get in," Kayla replied as she turned to watch the man in the leather. She hoped they only heard the anger in her voice and not the slightest bit of fear she was feeling. "Forced is a better term, actually. How did you even find me?"_

"_We found nothing after a quick background check-"_

"_A _what?"

"_-and decided that with the right training," The man with the eye patch turned towards her. "We want you on _our_ side."_

_Kayla crossed her arms over her chest. "What could you possibly want with me? I'm just an author." Well, that wasn't quite true anymore, but they didn't need to know that. Who were they to ask these things of her? Definitely some kind of organization. _

_The man in front of her rose an eyebrow. "With abilities like yours, how could we not?" He looked around the room accusingly. "Did nobody explain to you who we are?" Then he returned briefly to the equipment._

_She shrugged. "Something about a shield."_

"_S.H.I.E.L.D. Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement Logistics Division," the man in the suit with the sunglasses spoke up as he took a few steps forward and faced her. "We specialize in… weird."_

_She rose an eyebrow at the man to hide the fear that she was feeling. "And I'm weird?"_

_The man nodded. He lifted his hand out in front of him and took a few more steps forward. "I'm Agent Coulson."_

_Kayla debated on simply standing there, ignoring his formalities, but thought better on it and hesitantly shook his hand. "Kayla Hudson," she half asked as she looked at him. "But you already knew that."_

_She briefly saw the corner of his mouth twitch before he was turning away and gesturing to the other man. His voice was much quieter as he stepped aside, closer than Eye Patch across the room. "Director Fury of S.H.I.E.L.D. He runs things around here."_

"_So," Kayla trailed off as the man clad in leather hit a few buttons on the screen. "Why is it that I'm wanted by the government for my weirdness?"_

"_You're abilities are unique, something we decided that we'd like to add as a strength to S.H.I.E.L.D." The man named Fury said._

"_My abilities?" Kayla froze, her eyes going wide. How could they know? Why would they want to? What were they going to do to her? She tried to play her fear off as confusion. She couldn't let them know, or want them to. "I have no idea what you're talking about."_

"_I'm pretty sure you know _exactly_ what it is we're talking about." The man paused, lifting his shoulders. "But, if you want to play _that_ game," he trailed off as he turned back to the screens behind him. A video popped up and began to play. There was no audio, and it wasn't much of a sight to see. But, Kayla would know it anywhere. It was the cemetery that her father was buried in, and the video looked like security feed. Kayla stepped forward as she watched. She saw herself crouched down at her father's grave, almost on the edge of the feed._

_She gasped as she remembered the day. It had been about a month before, when she had visited her father's grave. Kayla glanced over at the two men. Her voice shook as she said, "Why do you have this? How?"_

_Neither answered, so she turned back to the feed. She saw herself kneeling on the grass, waving her arms, hands clenched in fists. She remembered being angry that day, mad that her life had turned out the way it did and she blamed her father for it. Kayla watched as her body grew tense and she tipped her head back and screamed to the sky. A moment later, a pink dome exploded around her._

_She watched until the screen flickered into blackness. Kayla held a hand to her chest and turned her gaze to the floor. _They knew._ What would happen to her, now that people knew that she was a freak of nature? Would she get locked up in a mental institution? Experimented on by crazed scientists? _

"_We know that…" He trailed off as he looked back towards the screen. "Norway… is a touchy subject. We know that's where you first got your powers, two months ago."_

_Kayla stared at the man with one eye. She liked how he explained the whole experience in one word. She liked that he had just said _Norway, _instead of explaining what had happened to her._

"_We want you to join a team." The statement startled her. That hadn't been what she was expecting. She expected the worst._

_Kayla looked up at the two men, suspicious and afraid. "A team? For what?" Who would want _her_ on a team, doing _that_ around others? Wasn't she dangerous, and a freak? And she's pretty sure that guy- Coulson- had called her a weirdo._

_The man stared down at her intently, and spoke with a monotone, yet bold voice, completely serious. "To protect the world."_

oOo

Kayla's eyes scanned over the small fires, tipped over cars, and destroyed buildings. It was devastating what had happened in a handful of minutes, but she tried not to think about it. Instead, she thought about the portal above them. The blue fog of the Tesseract surrounded the device on top of the tower as a blue beam of light broke a hole in the sky. The wormhole opened a pathway straight into space from a different world. More and more of the Chitauri poured out, and with them, a beast.

It flew through the air, casting a shadow across the large street. It soared down the length of Stark Tower, and she got a closer look at it as it flew over them. It looked like an ugly version of some type of whale, spikes protruding out of its back and sides. A plate over its head and the length of its body, its teeth sharp as it let out a roar and Kayla shivered in fear. How were they supposed to take on a thing like that?

The sides of the beast popped, and Kayla watched as Chitauri jumped out of it, landing on the buildings the beast passed. On both sides of the street, the aliens slid down the sides of the buildings, coming closer to civilization.

"Stark, you seeing this?" Cap called out through the comm. Obviously, Iron Man was probably their best chance at fighting that thing, or Thor, but he was tied up at the moment.

"_Seeing, still working on believing_." Stark replied. "_Where's Banner? Has he shown up yet_?"

"Banner?"

There was a small pause. "_Just keep me posted_."

Kayla watched as the huge beast flew over the streets and buildings. Her eyes flickered back over to the Chitauri who clung to the buildings around the her peripheral vision, she saw movement. She turned to follow Romanoff, who was moving to crouch next to Clint against a car. She briefly leaned against the metal before leaning forward. Rogers crouched on her right at the front of the car, and Romanoff and Clint were on her left. The girl saw the aliens moving towards them, and she crouched, fists holding some of her weight as she leaned forward, shards still in hand. She took in a deep breath, trying to push down the fear so she could deal with the task at hand. _This_ was real life. She was ready.

"We've got civilians trapped," Clint said, looking down the street.

"You're call, Cap," Kayla stated as she looked over at the soldier. She voiced what she thought was the best strategy; Cap calling the shots. His blue eyes peered down at her briefly before turning his gaze down the street. A loud hum of Chitauri ships roared above them, and a blast of blue light shot through the streets. Rogers stood up. "Loki."

The brunette watched as the ships flew down the street, blasting away at the road and cars. The power of the scepter flipped cars and blew holes into the road.

"They're fish in a barrel down there," Cap said. He ducked down behind the car next to Kayla again. Clint rose above the car, aiming at a Chitauri and letting an arrow fly. Romanoff stood, firing her pistols. The archer ran forward, moving to the car in front of them to get a better advantage.

"We got this," Natasha met her eyes before looking back at Cap. "It's good. Go."

Cap paused, looking at each of them in turn. "You think you can hold them off?"

Clint turned. "Captain, it would be my genuine pleasure," he said, and then he pulled an arrow out of his quiver, knocking it back against the string. The archer stood, letting an arrow fly into a skull of a Chitauri. The arrow broke off, hitting several more of the aliens around the first, causing them to drop.

Kayla nodded to Rogers with a small smile. "We're a team, right? We've got your back." He nodded to her before turning and jumping over the ledge of the bridge. Kayla turned back to the fight to see Romanoff firing her pistols. The former moved forward - ducking to give the more experienced woman room to fire – closer to the Chirtauri. Kayla moved next to Clint, tapping him on the thigh. She aimed for a neck of one of the Chitauri and threw her shard after standing for a split second. She replaced the shard as the alien fell, and she moved to the other side of Clint.

More Chitauri were heading their way, and they were shooting their own weapons at the three behind the cars. They couldn't really get a good shot in without getting hit. Kayla thought of an idea. "Clint," she said before standing and throwing two shards at the hostiles, one sinking into a thigh and the other into a shoulder. She had to duck again as blue flashed by her head. "I have an idea."

"Yeah?" He asked as he knocked another arrow back. "Enlighten me."

"I'll distract them, you fire. Easy." She pointed towards the aliens with a shrug.

"Yeah, and if you get hit?" Clint raised an eyebrow as he looked down at her. She raised one of her own and wrapped her pink shield around her, as if to say, _you were saying_? Before he got out a response, she raced forward, straight towards the enemy. She briefly saw the aliens raise their guns towards her, and she raised her arm on instinct to protect her face. The impact on her shield always hummed through her body, letting her know that it was being penetrated. But, the hum didn't come. The girl lowered her arm to see that the two Chitauri were strewn across the ground, disarmed with arrows in their skulls. The girl sent a smirk over to the archer, as if to say, _told you._

Kayla ran forward, heading towards another alien and throwing the shards at them. The glass-like material sunk into flesh. When the being fell, she glanced around to see if any more threats were present. There were a few Chitauri down-aways, but not close enough to throw at yet. But, she did see that Clint had moved over to a bus and was helping a child come out through the window. Kayla raced over, ducking around Natasha who was firing at another Chitauri. The brunette's shield shot out, the pink dome stretching high and wide, enough to protect the people who were trying to get to safety, just as Chitauri bullets shot their way. She pushed her shield farther, moving it over the bus, so the dome almost touched the building behind it. Kayla saw the glances she got, but only smiled reassuringly at the people.

After a few moments, Clint finally got the door open and he ushered the people out. When the last one was gone and a safe distance away, she dropped her shield. Clint rushed over to her side, raising his bow. The three continued to work together, taking down the enemy army.

"Just like Budapest all over again," Natasha called out after they continued to fight.

"You and I remember Budapest very differently," Clint replied, his eyes widened in surprise.

"The adventures you people go on," Kayla said, shaking her head in disbelief as she ran forward, her shield wrapped close around her. As she went around a car, she came into close proximity of one of the Chitauri, causing her to hesitate.

Seeing the thing up close was so much more different than at a distance. She could see its face under the helmet it wore, and its gray skin startled her. She found herself staring at the alien as it raised its weapon at her. With the movement, she was brought back to the situation she was in, and her instincts kicked in, because if she didn't move, she would be toast. This instinct made her raise her leg up and kick the weapon out of its hand with a wide swing of her leg, shifting her entire body in a complete circle with the move. She had a brief moment to think about her training at S.H.I.E.L.D. and how it completely paid off.

She manifested another shard, stepping towards the alien and driving the shard into its stomach. There was no armor protecting it there, along with the neck. She drove a second shard into the flesh where the neck met the shoulder. She pulled the shards out of its body as it fell to the ground, the life disappearing from it. Her shards were covered in blood, although it wasn't exactly red. More like a grayish-green color. Kayla tore her gaze away from the glass-like material and charged another alien, feeling the weapons attack her shield and she repeated the process. The brunette created a longer shard, imitating a sword, and swung at a Chitauri. The alien dodged, taking a step away and letting out a roar. Kayla threw a small shard, hitting a shoulder. She dropped her shield to give herself space as she kicked out her foot and hitting the alien in the leg, trying to bring it down.

It didn't fall. Instead, the alien copied her move and kicked her legs out from under her. Kayla fell onto her back, which spread searing hot pain throughout her, as the alien stepped forward and pointed its gun down at her. Before it got the chance to shoot, however, Clint was there, tripping the Chitauri. Its gun tumbled a few feet away, and before it got the chance to move, the archer was pulling an arrow out of his quiver and drove it hard through the Chitauri's chest.

Kayla quickly stood, grabbing her sword-shard off the ground. In the heat of the moment, she hadn't had time to be scared. She had a world to save, and fear of death wouldn't stop her. After making sure that the alien was dead, Clint stood and turned towards her. She quickly sent him a smile of thanks as he smirked. "The hero always saves the damsel."

She rolled her eyes at him before turning away. She shouldn't have expected anything less from him. She briefly wondered if he even knew the meaning behind the Damsel in Distress, how the beautiful young woman usually is in dire need of a hero to save her from a villain or monster. How the hero usually convinced the woman to become their wife after their rescue. How saving the woman is an essential part of the hero's purpose. He didn't know what he and just suggested.

Kayla decided to leave the comment alone and rushed forward to attack another Chitauri, who was heading towards Natasha, lifting its weapon. The agent was being crowded, so Kayla jumped forward, sinking her shard into the back of the Chitauri closest to her. She pulled the shard out and drove it through flesh again to insure that it was dead. As the body hit the floor, a shriek rang out behind her. Kayla turned to see Clint lying on his back, a Chitauri standing over him, weaponless, but with deadly claws outstretched toward Clint's neck. The brunette jumped forward in a rush of adrenaline, more than she had before, slamming her shard into its back. After a few moments of the alien crying out in pain, Clint drove an arrow through its chest as he got up on one knee, silencing it. The Chitauri fell to the side, hopefully dead.

Kayla grinned down at the archer as he stood. "What was _that_?"

He only raised an eyebrow trying to play it off. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"You totally screamed like a little girl!" Kayla jumped up once in strange excitement.

Clint raised his chin, closing his eyes briefly. His next words came out childish and higher pitched. "And so what if I did?"

Kayla let out a laugh as she hit him in the chest, announcing, "Clint Barton everyone, also known as Hawkeye. Assassin archer who screams like little girls."

He laid a hand on his chest in mock hurt as she continues. "Now who's the damsel?" Firstly, she had to save him, and secondly, because the high pitched scream he had let out. She looked up at him as he rose his eyebrows, a grin playing on both of their lips.

Movement behind the archer caused Kayla to swear as she instinctively threw up her shield, ruining the moment. Battlefield. Right. The pink of the dome pushed over Clint - protecting him as well as the Chitauri shot a blast of blue at him. The blast dissolved against the dome on impact, only causing Kayla to flinch at the slight ripple that was sent through her body. Clint rose his bow and knocked an arrow back, sending a nod her way before she contracted her shield and he released the arrow. The brunette raised her shard like a spear, and threw it as hard as she could at another Chitauri. The shard flew through the barrier of the dome and plunged into the alien's skull, snapping its head back and causing the body to clatter to the ground.

Two more Chitauri pounded at her dome that was slowly contracting. She turned and called on another shard, but before she could do anything, Cap was there, hitting away one with his shield and then the next. Kayla rose her arm to throw a shard when the Chitauri in front of her lit up like a Christmas tree. Lightning coursed through its body, and Kayla let her shield drop as the last alien fell down in a heap.

Thor flew down a moment later, landing a few feet away from the bodies of the Chitauri. "Thor!" Kayla called out as he stepped forward, looking pissed and injured. He nodded to her as she beamed up at him. She was glad to see that he wasn't too injured and that he was now fighting by their side, even if they were clear for now. Kayla took the moment to wipe a hand across her forehead as she breathed in a deep breath. She dropped the shard she had been holding in her hand as Cap stepped forward.

"What's the story upstairs?" Cap asked the god.

"The power surrounding the cube is impenetrable," was the response from Thor, his voice low and grave.

"_Thor's right_," Stark's voice came over the comm as he flew by above the group. "_We gotta deal with these guys_."

Kayla watched as Clint pulled an arrow out of a body and Natasha looked around at the group, asking, "How do we do this?"

"As a team," Cap and Kayla both stated at the same time. She had learned a long time ago that working together was so much easier than working alone.

"I have unfinished business with Loki," Thor said.

"Yeah?" Clint fidgeted with the tip of the arrow in his hand. "Get in line."

"Save it," Rogers said. He was stepping up, being Captain America. He was a leader now. "Loki's going to keep this fight focused on us and that's what we need. Without him, these things could run wild."

Kayla and the others gathered around Cap as he talked. He raised his hands, gesturing. "We've got Stark up top. He's gonna need us to-"

He was interrupted as an engine rolled up behind him, and Kayla perked up. A crappy motorcycle rolled up, the driver causing her to grin. "Bruce! You're here."

They all walked forward, Kayla smiling. He was alive and ready. He slid off the bike as Kayla bounced on her heels.

"So," Bruce walked forward, gesturing around at the city around them. He looked shocked by the destruction, and even saddened. "This all seems… horrible."

Natasha rose her chin a little. "I've seen worse." There was a gleam in her eyes.

Bruce stopped a few feet away. He was dirty; his hair was a mess, with a layer of dust covering his head, and his clothes were all rumpled and disheveled. His brown eyes looked back at the spy. "Sorry."

"No, we could use a little worse."

"Stark," Cap said into the comm. "We got him."

"_Banner_?" The comm crackled into her ear.

"Just like you said."

Stark's voice was grave as he spoke the next words. "_Then tell him to suit up. I'm bringing the party to you_."

Kayla looked up into the sky. "The party?" She asked as she brought her hand up to her ear, looking for Tony up in the sky. "Haven't you done enough of that lately?"

Tony laughed once in her ear, but didn't respond.

A few seconds later, Tony came around a building, flying through the air towards them. Another moment passed before one of the huge beasts flew after him, its fins hitting the buildings, causing debris to fall, as it flew down the street towards the group. Kayla let out a breath as she mumbled, "Great."

"I-I don't see how that's a party." Natasha shook her head.

Kayla watched Thor out of the corner of her eye lift his hammer, ready to fight the huge beast. Bruce looked at the team quickly before walking down the street away from them.

"Dr. Banner," Cap stepped forward himself. "Now might be a really good time to get angry."

"That's my secret, Captain," Bruce called over his shoulder as he walked forward. He paused, looking back briefly. "I'm always angry." And then a breath later, the doctor started to change, his skin turning green as he grew. His shirt began to rip as his arms and chest grew bigger. And then he was the Hulk, his green fist flying through the air and hitting the beast straight on. The Hulk and the beast slid across the road from the speed and weight of the alien, and soon the alien started to flip over the Hulk. Her mouth fell open as she a shadow start to cast over them.

"_Hold_ _on_," Tony said through the comm. She looked up to see Iron Man's arm stretched out. He fired at the beast, but it continued to fall. Kayla blinked once before pushing her shield out around her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Cap lunge to the side and hold his own shield over himself and Natasha. Clint took a step towards Kayla, and she let the dome push around him, protecting him.

She wasn't sure if her shield would hold form the weight of the beast, and obviously Clint didn't think so either. She didn't know who moved first, but Clint had wrapped an arm around her shoulders and stood in front of her at the same time that she wrapped her arms around his waist and tucked her chin in the space where his neck met his shoulder. He was protecting her with his body, and she just clung onto him, fearful that her shield wouldn't hold and that they wouldn't make it. Or that her shield _would_ hold and she would feel it pushing in on her.

As the beast fell, the armor exploded, and a blast of air shot towards them. Clint's arm tightened around her shoulder as debris fell around them and the alien's huge body fell the opposite way. Armor fell onto Kayla's shield, and the blast pushed at her dome, but she continued to protect herself and Clint. Her shield held, the effort pushing on her as they stood right where all of the armor from the alien fell. She used all of her focus to make sure her shield held as pressure ran through her body. As the explosion died down, and the strain on her shield vanished, she let it drop and began to fall from exhaustion.

"Kay," Clint called her name as he moved an arm around her waist to hold her up. She felt dizzy for a moment as she gripped onto the archer. Her head fell onto his shoulder as she took a deep breath. She let him hold her weight as she caught her breath. "Are you okay?"

His voice was soft in her ear. She shivered as his lips moved against her skin. Kayla nodded, finally standing on her own and taking a step away from him. His hand rested on her as he looked down at her questionably. She realized that she hadn't answered him and sent him a smile. "Yeah, Clint. Just catching my breath."

He nodded, and took a step away himself as he glanced around. Screams and roars echoed around them, and Kayla looked up to see the Chitauri on the buildings roaring at them as they looked at the beast's limp body on the ground. They were shaking with anger because Hulk had taken down the huge alien. The Hulk roared back, his vocal inflection much deeper and louder than that of the Chitauri. The Hulk backed up enough to stand next to Kayla, and he gently touched her with one of his big green fingers and a grunt in acknowledgement. The girl grinned up at their own beast before turning and facing the building where she spotted some Chitauri. Tony landed next to Kayla, and Clint moved to stand on the other side of the Hulk, knocking an arrow back on the string and raising it to aim. Thor held his hammer at the ready, and Natasha held her pistols at her sides. Cap stared up at the sides of the buildings and Tony shifted his shoulders. The team stood with their backs to each other, all looking up at the roaring aliens. Kayla manifested two shards, and she stood up straighter. She was ready to get back in the game and fight.

"Guys," Natasha called out, and the whole team turned. She was looking up at the portal again, and Kayla's eyes followed hers. Two more of the giant beasts were floating down from the portal, and more of the Chitauri ships were pouring out of the wormhole.

"_Call it, Captain_," Tony said, his voice morphed by the suit.

"Alright, now listen up," Cap stepped forward, and the team turned to him. "Until we can close that portal up, priority is containment. Barton, I want you on that roof." He pointed from the agent to said building. "Eyes on everything, call out patterns and strays. Stark, you get the perimeter. Anything that gets more than three blocks out you turn it back, or you turn it to ash."

"Wanna give me a lift?" Clint asked the man in the suit. Tony nodded, walking towards him.

"_Better clench up, Legolas_," Stark added.

"Wait!" Kayla called out, taking a step forward as Stark paused. Clint was leaving to perch up on top of a rooftop somewhere. She was worried that she wouldn't be able to get his back or push her shield around him to protect him. She remembered all of the thoughts that had gone through her head on the way to the city, and before she could stop herself, she was moving. Kayla reached forward, hands on either side of his neck as she leaned forward on her tiptoes and kissed him.

Her lips pushed softly against his before she pulled away and took a step back. Even if it had been a short two seconds, her heart was soaring from the contact. Kayla couldn't quite believe that she had just done that, but she grinned anyways, stepping back again as Tony stepped towards Clint. Her grin grew even more as she saw the expression on the archer's face. Surprise and awe. Kayla lifted two fingers into a lazy salute before Stark grabbed onto Clint's shoulders and he was lifted into the air.

She briefly touched her fingers to her lips before she dropped her head and took a step back. "Sorry, Cap." Her grin died down to a smile as she looked at Rogers and lifted her hand. "Take the stage."

She didn't miss the look in his blue eyes as he nodded and turned to the god, continuing. "Thor. You gotta try and bottleneck that portal, slow them down. You got the lightning. Light the bastards up."

Thor spun his hammer in his hand, picking up speed before shooting into the air.

"Us three," Cap looked to Kayla and Natasha. "We stay on the ground. We keep the fighting here. And Hulk?"

The green monster turned from where he had been facing the Chitauri, a grunt escaping his lips. His teeth were clenched as he looked at the captain. Rogers raised a glove clad hand and pointed a finger at the Hulk. "Smash."

A grin stretched across Hulk's face before he obliged, jumping into the air. She watched as he smashed the Chitauri into the sides of the building like they were rag dolls. A few moments later, the Hulk and ventured away, smashing his way through the aliens and onto the next group. The sky darkened, and Kayla looked up. Thor's lightning shot through the sky where he was stationed at a tower. The lightning lit up the wormhole and the small ships that poured out. He directed the lightning at the two huge beasts, and the power of it pushed them back and exploded into them.

Kayla briefly found a smile on her face. She was surrounded by the team of Avengers around her, fighting side by side. This was the first that she felt like she belonged somewhere, where she _mattered_. It warmed her heart, even if they were in the middle of a battle field.

Kayla, Cap and Natasha all started fighting on the ground again. As she threw shards and stabbed her way through the aliens, she heard the conversation going on over the comm. Clint was calling out the patterns to Stark, informing him that the aliens couldn't bank for shit. Kayla had looked up at the building, distracted by Clint's voice when she got hit from behind, pain slicing through her arm. She let out a gasp as she fell forward, not preparing to catch herself as her body hit the pavement. Kayla's eyes blurred from the impact and blackness consumed her.

* * *

_**End Note:**_** More like question: How does everyone feel about Clint and Kayla? More gushy feelings... or less? **

**Oh, and next chapter is an iffy chapter. I'm not so proud of it as I should be but...eh, what can you do?**

**Thanks everyone!**

_-OnyxRing_


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